Frozen Powers 2
by Sophisticated Grace
Summary: [AnnaxKristoff] [ElsaxOC] It's been a year and a half, and everyone has settled back into their normal routines, after the chaos of the royal purges, as it has become known. However, the past doesn't always stay in the past, and something evil's brewing on the horizon... [Sequel to Frozen Powers] [Chapter 21 published on 4th June 2014] [Updated every three / four days]
1. Chapter 1 - dedicted to KLime (guest)

**Hey, all! I'm back, with Frozen Powers 2! I hope you like it, and don't forget to review when you're done!**

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The man chuckled to himself as the Queen of Arendelle ran over to him happily, her meeting with the King of a small, lesser known Kingdom named Reinazar finally finished. She had been discussing trade negotiations with him and, Odd assumed, trying her very best to seem interested, while keeping her eyes painfully wide in an attempt to stay awake. That was what had happened at her last meeting, at any rate.

Elsa grinned as she wrapped her arms around Odd happily, and he spun her around quickly before gently placing her back down, her smile mirrored, just as wide.

Now, for most people, to randomly start spinning the Queen around would have been considered absolutely crazy, and no doubt, they would have been sent to one of the lunatic asylums, which were hidden somewhere on little islands, deep in the Norwegian Sea. Most people hated them, the Queen especially, for she had overheard - with much sorrow - her parents discussing the option of sending her there until she learnt to control her powers. She still felt guilty about it now, for it was on a trip to one of the said asylums, in which her parents wanted to study the quality of life there and see if it would be suitable for their daughter or not, that their ship had sunk.

Odd's mind wandered for a second, as he considered how bizarre it would be normally, if a random man began was to spin the Queen around, and he couldn't help but chuckle quietly. Of course, he was no random man - he had helped to save Elsa's life, and as a result, people didn't really mind what he did.

That, and the fact that he and the Queen were engaged to be married.

They hadn't rushed into things,; Odd and Elsa had been together as a non-official couple for a year and a third, or so, now, and just two months before, he had proposed to her, to which she responded by squealing happily and jumping on him in an excited, enthusiastic kiss.

Now, she was twenty six years old, already sixteen and a half months late for the marriage deadline, which stated that she had to have married by her twenty fifth birthday, but after everything that had gone on, none of the other royals, or none of the occupants of Arendelle, made any fuss.

Odd rubbed the back of his head, where Elsa had knocked him over onto the floor. He could still feel the stinging if he thought too much about it. Even if she could hide it better, could adapt to fit the situation, the Queen really was similar to her younger sister.

Wonderful.

In all seriousness, though, Odd didn't really mind Elsa's sometimes peculiar antics - he loved her for who she was, and she loved him just the same. After all, he was a nobody, and she was the Queen.

_No,_ he reminded himself, _that's not true._ _You're the _official Arendelle Forest Master and Protector, _silly_. He had to bite back a laugh - Anna and Elsa really were inventive with names... Possibly. It was fair enough giving him a title, because it meant that he could stop working as a stable boy and gave him something to do during the day. As the "official Arendelle Forest Master and Protector", he had to scout the forests, looking for any signs of danger and helping people if they got hurt or lost.

Not a difficult job at all, but the title at least made it sound professional, and over glamorized it. It wasn't that he was one for posh names, but simply because actually being someone other than 'the stable boy' or 'that guy from the forests' stopped other kingdoms from frowning upon his and Elsa's relationship.

At least a little, any way. The Southern Isles, especially, were still angry about Elsa's engagement to him, for originally, she was going to marry their second eldest Prince, Prince Bjørn.

Bjørn... That name still made Odd's fists clench. He had come to Arendelle when Karleif and his mother, along with their band of trust followers had began targetting royalty. They had been trying to kill off the royals, in search of blood which had magic in it, so that they could use it themselves and become the most powerful sorcerers in the world.

Odd couldn't quite remember what they planned to do once they had achieved this - couldn't even recall if it had been mentioned. Still, the thought still made his blood boil.

Back on track, though. Bjørn had come to Arendelle requesting that he and Elsa became married, using the excuse that 'they had to keep the royal bloodline going'. _Little pervert_, Odd thought savagely to himself.

In the end, though, that hadn't been the reason he had wanted to marry Queen Elsa. Instead, he was planning to use Arendelle's money to pay off the debts of the Southern Isles.

_A thief and a pervert. _Odd's mind thought, _What a messed up bloke._

In the end, it resulted that Bjørn had been possessed by Karleif's mother, and had been partially controlled by her. It transpired that he wasn't actually as greedy as he seemed, and was almost a nice guy, except for the fact that he took advantage of people.

Odd might have taken the time to know him. That is, if the spirit of Karleif's mother hadn't killed him when he tried to get away from Arendelle. Naturally, the Southern Isles were angry to have lost a Prince. And not just a worthless one like Hans, either.

Overall, it had been a horrible day. Many of the Royals had ended up drowning as they tried to flee Arendelle, their boats completely burned down by the two sorcerers - Karleif and his Mother - and the church was left as a skeleton of what it had been. Some work had been done to restore it, but it was very difficult.

Karleif, his mother and their followers had been crushed when the church's ceiling had fallen down upon them, but unfortunately, Elsa had been trapped inside at the same time. However, unlike her enemy, she seemed to have an in-built defense mechanism, and when the rubble had began to fall around her, Elsa's ice magic had frozen her body solid, so that she was protected.

At first, Odd had feared that the Queen would have remained frozen forever, and not be able to come back to life, but luckily, with the help of Grand Pabbie, they had worked out how to save her. It had taken a while for her to thaw, but when she had, everything had been perfect.

Odd could still picture that amazing day in his memories.

_"Odd!" The voice carried on the wind, and it had a beautiful, melodic __sound to it. "Odd! Wait!"  
He didn't need to look to know who that voice belonged to, but he did anyway, and there was Elsa, standing in the doorway, calling for him. His face broke out into a large grin, as he saw her.  
For a moment, she just stood there, and then she ran towards him, holding up the bottom of the tattered wedding dress with her good arm - the one which wasn't broken still - so that she wouldn't trip over it. For all of the time she had been frozen, the gown had been stuck to her, and it was impossible to remove.  
Odd grinned as she made her way over to him, and he jumped off of Storm Chaser quickly.  
The crowd parted as their Queen ran through the middle, and Odd couldn't help but notice how beautiful she was when she smiled - even if she did have hundreds of scratches all over her face, including a rather nasty gash across the side of her forehead.  
She quickly reached Odd, and he caught her in his arms, giving her a massive hug, that one only gives to someone they truly love. He pulled away, and Elsa smiled at him gently, and her joy over ruled the stinging pains all over her body. She looked at him in the eyes, and then suddenly, not caring that at least one hundred people were watching, she pulled him closer and gave him a long, gentle kiss, as she wrapped her arms around him._

Coming out of his little moment of thought, he smiled at Elsa, and she pecked him gently on the cheek.

"Hey, Odd." She greeted, smiling, and he returned the gesture as he took her hand, and together, they began to walk through the corridors of the castle together, heading to lunch.

"So," Odd said casually, "How was the meeting?"

Elsa rolled her eyes. "Don't make me laugh; it was just as dull as usual."

Odd chuckled. "That bad, huh?" He asked, and his fiancée nodded, sighing. "What was wrong this time?"

Elsa shrugged slightly. "The usual. I'm sure the king's a nice man, but he really is rather dull, as always - he kept going on about how much valuable trading products the kingdom of Reinazar has, and how they are a strong trading point." She sighed, as she looked at the new pictures on the walls, paintings of freshly blossomed spring flowers, warm summer meadows, crisp trees in autumn, and the gentle snow of the winter. "The only thing he over looked is that I had thorough training in English, and I know how to read between the lines. Whenever I went slightly off topic, for example if I began talking about another country, he'd rush to get back on topic. Seems a bit desperate, don't you think?"

Odd nodded, agreeing. "Just a bit." He joked, and Elsa giggled, as the pair entered the dining hall and sat down. Anna and Kristoff were sat around the table already, happily munching away on their ham, lettuce and tomato sandwiches, and, Odd noticed with amusement, the Princess also had a bowl of chocolates hidden under the table. Every so often, she would turn to her daughter, now aged eighteen and a half months old, and help to feed her a spoonful of soup, although the child was perfectly capable of feeding herself by now. In fact, the elder Princess simply used it as an excuse, for as she did so, her hand would drift towards her candy, as she hastily popped one in her mouth, smiling at the sweet taste.

She didn't realize that Kristoff knew exactly what she was doing. Didn't know that he couldn't care less, either.

Odd shook his head happily as he sat down next to Elsa, and Anna looked up at them, beaming. Ever since they had gotten together, she had been constantly ecstatic for them, and, Odd assumed, she felt quite smug about setting them up too.

"Afternoon," Kristoff greeted, as he took a bite of his sandwich happily. "How did the meeting go?"

Elsa sighed. "I think I may have dosed off at one point, briefly." she said in response, and that was answer enough. Anna giggled slightly at her sister, as she waved the spoon in front of Mia's face to catch her attention.

"I'm so glad I'm not Queen." She said, and Elsa nodded in agreement.

"Some aspects of it are nice, but I'd trade with you any day." She joked, and Anna smiled, before considering.

"Actually..." She said, as she helped feed an eager Mia another spoonful of her lunch. They little child really did love solid foods, even if her favorite was soup, which could hardly be considered solid. Anna had never heard of a child's favourite meal being soup, but considering she had eaten it ever since she could actually stomach things other than milk, she must have developed a taste for it. "I'll take you up on that offer. Then the kitchen staff wouldn't get annoyed when I ask for chocolate."

Elsa frowned, and Odd shook his head at her. "Why does it annoy them?" He queried.

Anna shrugged slightly, and Kristoff chuckled. "She usually spends about half a day in the kitchens, asking for more chocolate." He explained. Elsa rolled her eyes.

"No one would guess that you were a chocoholic, would they?" She teased, and Anna pouted at her sister's sarcasm.

Just then, some quiet little footsteps sounded outside, and the door opened with a slight creak. At first, it appeared like no one was there, but then there came the sound of overly-excited laughter, as a little snowman came skipping into view.

"Olaf!" Elsa and Anna cried out in sync, happily. Kristoff smiled, as he greeted, "Hey, Mate," and Mia laughed at him at him, crying out "O-af!" in an attempt to recreate the snowman's name, reaching for him with her little arms, excitedly. Odd just stared at the snowman, his face a mixture of shock and confusion.

Elsa noticed this quickly, and smiled sheepishly. "Oops. I guess you've never met Olaf, have you?"

Odd shook his head, his brown hair flying around his face, and Olaf came trotting over bouncily.

"Hiya, Elsa!" He greeted warmly, then he looked at Odd. "And... who are you?"

Odd was temporarily shocked, but Elsa reacted first.

"This is Odd, my fiancé" She said, indicating to her fiancée. "Odd, this is Olaf."

Olaf bounced around happily at the opportunity to make a new friend. Jumping higher, making his body parts separate momentarily, and he launched himself at Odd, wrapping his arms around his legs and hanging on tightly.

"Hi! Nice to meet you! My name's Olaf and I like warm hugs!"

Odd stared down at the strange little snowman clinging onto his legs, unsure.

"Uhm..." He said, unsure and not knowing what to think. It wasn't everyday you came across a walking, talking snowman, after all. "Nice to meet you, Olaf... I guess?"

Elsa smiled at him, and had to hold back her laughter. Still, though, he reacted better than most people did, but that being said, he was accustomed to Elsa's magic more than most people were. Especially over the week when she had been getting ready to marry Bjørn, Odd had grown used to her random outbursts and, as was clear now, the unbelievable scale of her powers.

"So, Olaf," Elsa said, "Where have you been? I haven't seen you around in over a year, at least!"

Olaf giggled happily, as he bounced around to see Mia. Reaching up, completely ignoring Elsa, he tickled the girl under her chin, and was unfazed when she took his wooden arm and began playing with it, completely amazed by the strange item. Soon, though, she got bored of it, and dropped it on the floor, before it ran on fingertips back to it's owner, and Olaf clapped his hands together happily.

He lifted up his head with his hand to get a better view, and Mia laughed as she took his nose, and began to suck on it, and the snowman, not having the heart to take it off of her, began to sob like a child. Anna, however, knew better, and quickly snatched it away, replacing it with a spoonful of soup, and returning the vegetable to Olaf, who squealed with delight.

Anna turned to Kristoff, glaring. "You know, I'm blaming that on you and Sven! You're a bad influence on Mia!"

Kristoff raised his eyebrows. "So, she's not allowed to eat healthily?" He asked, and Anna shook her head, her pigtails flying.

"Not that, duh! Of course she can eat healthily. All I'm saying is that she needs to be a normal child, and normal children don't eat carrots randomly. At least not at her age; maybe I'll let her off when she's older."

"Normal kids wouldn't be eating soup." Kristoff pointed out, but Anna waved her hand dismissively.

"Soup's cooked, it has a _combination_ of flavours, I can let her off for that." She replied, scowling, though her eyes shimmered amusedly.

Kristoff glanced helplessly at Elsa, who just shrugged and sent him a look which read, "Just accept it."

He chuckled, and nodded at Anna, muttering, "Yes, yes, I'm an awful person, I shan't do it again."

Elsa turned back to Olaf.

"So, Olaf, where have you been?" She repeated, not annoyed that he'd ignored her - he was only being Olaf, after all.

Olaf turned to her, as if he'd just realised that she'd spoken. "Oh, right!" He said, his voice cheerful. "I went looking for Santa!" The way he said it, it almost seemed as if he thought it was obvious.

"Oh. Of course. Silly me." Elsa replied, but Olaf looked a little down. "What's wrong?"

Olaf shrugged. "Oh, Santa doesn't exist. I couldn't find him. I didn't stop searching, but..." He said, and Elsa felt bad for him. It was Odd who acted first.

"Of course he does!" He said, as if he were talking to a young child, perhaps to reassure Mia, although whether she understood or not was another matter. "But you can't find him unless you know exactly where he lives. Where do you think he lives?"

Olaf thought for a moment. "Australia?" He suggested, and Odd had to fight the urge to face palm.

Elsa giggled. "No, No, No. He lives at the North Pole." She corrected, amused at the snowman's naïvety, and he smiled.

"Oh! So I have to go to the North Pole?"

This was a little more difficult, but for Odd, it was easy to explain why he couldn't go to find Santa.

"Well, no one knows where he actually lives, Olaf." He said, calmer in the snowman's presence now. "So you can't find him. Maybe on christmas, you can wait up for him though, with Mia?"

Olaf gasped excitedly, his head being raised by his hands.

"Great idea, Olf!" Olaf cried, and Odd crossed his arms, a little annoyed this time, but he remained calm.

"My name's Odd." He corrected, trying to sound gentle, and Olaf giggled.

"I know!" He cried, "That's what I said!" Waving, the snowman turned around and bounced out of the hall - literally, jumping a few meters at a time - and the door closed with a slight thud.

"Well, he seemed like a... nice guy." Odd said, as he rubbed the back of his neck and sat down again, picking a sandwich from a platter on the table. Elsa nodded, smiling.

"He's lovely, even if he is a little strange." She commented, and Odd nodded, agreeing.

Hans lay in his prison cell, the small bowl of - what was it? Gruel? - laying untouched at the other end. He was a prince, and he deserved better than this.

He snarled as he sat up, and looked outside the cell, through the bars, at the plain wall on the opposite side. Sighing, he lay back down, his twisted mind reeling.

Ever since he had received the news of Bjørn's death, Hans had been even more riled up than before. It wasn't that he was ever close to his brother - quite the opposite, in fact - but the fact that he had been killed, in Hans' mind, by Elsa herself. He didn't know the exact details, but as he didn't know, his mind was free to come up with it's own theory, and as a result, he'd taken full advantage of the opportunity.

But how to get revenge?

Not for his brother's death, no - he didn't care about that - but rather for his own public humiliation. He needed to get back at Elsa, and her brat of a sister, Anna, but how?

The cries of a struggling man sounded through the cell walls, and Hans could hear the guards shouting, "Next time, try not to pick a fight with someone superior to you!" Hans grinned - he loved the divisions between the poor, and the wealthy. It made him feel special, like someone who had a worth.

Even if he was stuck in a dark, dingy cell, twenty-four, seven.

Suddenly, something clicked in his mind.

_Fight_.

That was it!

He rushed over to the bars of his cell, and tried to force them open, but strong though he was - three and a half years in a prison cell meant that he had plenty of time to work on his muscle power - he could not pry the bars open. He snarled, angrily, and banged his head against the metal in his state of aggravation.

Oh well. Nothing to do but wait.

* * *

**So? How was it? **

**First things first, I'd really love to know who is actually reading this. Even if you don't normally review my work, please leave a review saying 'me' at least (although if possible, i'd prefer more detail) just so i know someone is reading this.**

**Also, in response to a guest review, yes, I based Odd off of Jack Frost from Rise of the Guardians, but I can't really see them as brothers - sorry. Besides, Jack's sister was about ten, or so, when he died, whereas when Odd left his home, his sister was just three. If I made them siblings, it would just make a mess of everything. You can think of them as siblings, though, if you want.**

**Okay, so - challenge time! What do you think Hans is planning? Leave your ideas in a review, along with one word - any word - which I promise to fit in the next chapter somewhere.**

**Thanks for reading!**

* * *

**_Hans lay in his prison cell, the small bowl of - what was it? Gruel? - laying untouched at the other end. He was a prince, and he deserved better than this._**

**_He snarled as he sat up, and looked outside the cell, through the bars, at the plain wall on the opposite side. Sighing, he lay back down, his twisted mind reeling._**

**_Ever since he had received the news of Bjørn's death, Hans had been even more riled up than before. It wasn't that he was ever close to his brother - quite the opposite, in fact - but the fact that he had been killed, in Hans' mind, by Elsa herself. He didn't know the exact details, but as he didn't know, his mind was free to come up with it's own theory, and as a result, he'd taken full advantage of the opportunity._**

**_But how to get revenge?_**

**_Not for his brother's death, no - he didn't care about that - but rather for his own public humiliation. He needed to get back at Elsa, and her brat of a sister, Anna, but how?_**

**_The cries of a struggling man sounded through the cell walls, and Hans could hear the guards shouting, "Next time, try not to pick a fight with someone superior to you!" Hans grinned - he loved the divisions between the poor, and the wealthy. It made him feel special, like someone who had a worth._**

**_Even if he was stuck in a dark, dingy cell, twenty-four, seven._**

**_Suddenly, something clicked in his mind._**

**_Fight._**

**_That was it!_**

**_He rushed over to the bars of his cell, and tried to force them open, but strong though he was - three and a half years in a prison cell meant that he had plenty of time to work on his muscle power - he could not pry the bars open. He snarled, angrily, and banged his head against the metal in his state of aggravation. _**

**_Oh well. Nothing to do but wait._**


	2. Chapter 2 - dedicated to KLime (guest)

_**Hans lay in his prison cell, the small bowl of - what was it? Gruel? - laying untouched at the other end. He was a prince, and he deserved better than this.**_  
_**He snarled as he sat up, and looked outside the cell, through the bars, at the plain wall on the opposite side. Sighing, he lay back down, his twisted mind reeling.**_  
_**Ever since he had received the news of Bjørn's death, Hans had been even more riled up than before. It wasn't that he was ever close to his brother - quite the opposite, in fact - but the fact that he had been killed, in Hans' mind, by Elsa herself. He didn't know the exact details, but as he didn't know, his mind was free to come up with it's own theory, and as a result, he'd taken full advantage of the opportunity.**_  
_**But how to get revenge?**_  
_**Not for his brother's death, no - he didn't care about that - but rather for his own public humiliation. He needed to get back at Elsa, and her brat of a sister, Anna, but how?**_  
_**The cries of a struggling man sounded through the cell walls, and Hans could hear the guards shouting, "Next time, try not to pick a fight with someone superior to you!" Hans grinned - he loved the divisions between the poor, and the wealthy. It made him feel special, like someone who had a worth.**_  
_**Even if he was stuck in a dark, dingy cell, twenty-four, seven.**_  
_**Suddenly, something clicked in his mind.**_  
_**Fight.**_  
_**That was it!**_  
_**He rushed over to the bars of his cell, and tried to force them open, but strong though he was - three and a half years in a prison cell meant that he had plenty of time to work on his muscle power - he could not pry the bars open. He snarled, angrily, and banged his head against the metal in his state of aggravation.**_  
_**Oh well. Nothing to do but wait.**_

* * *

Elsa woke up, panting heavily, and she rubbed her eyes tiredly as she sat up. She could feel her hair clinging onto her face, wet from sweat, and her nightdress was plastered on her body.  
Groaning, she stood up, and walked over to her en-suite bathroom, pumping some water into a basin and splashing her face with the freezing liquid. She dabbed her face dry with a towel, a few droplets still running down her cheeks, and she looked at herself in the mirror.  
Sighing at the sight, she pumped more icy cold water into the basin and leaned her head over, so that she could quickly wash her hair, remove the sweat from it, and then she wrapped it in a towel, before returning to her room, at a loss for what to do.  
Her mind wandered back to the dream - no, not a dream, a nightmare - she just had, and she involuntarily made her hands clench into a fist, flexing her fingers as if she was ready to fight. The images flashed through her mind: Hans standing over her; Raising the blade; Her sister freezing before her eyes. It was normal - she was used to these sorts of dreams, although she hadn't had one for many months. The next part of the dream was so much worse.  
The cell door had burst open, and there Hans stood, grinning wickedly, at his side the ghost of Bjørn, also smirking evilly, his eyes glinting with the desire for revenge. Elsa knew all about his death, and she couldn't help but feel responsible, even if it was, in no way what-so-ever, her fault.  
To a normal person, it wouldn't have been such a bad nightmare, nothing to worry about; just two people standing in the entrance to a prison cell, even if they were both grinning like possessed lunatics. However, to Elsa, it was extremely concerning - in fact, whenever she had a nightmare, she usually spent the next day jumping at every little thing. It wasn't like she was just being wimpish, though, rather that she feared what would come in the future. Before, when Bjørn had been around, she'd had a strange dream, in which a child was shot, her sister's ship had sunk, and she'd received a warning not to be foolish.  
Somehow, she still managed to remember the words.  
_"A foolish fool that is not yet foolish enough to be classified as a foolish and foolhardy fool, cannot fool those who are more foolish and more foolhardy than their own foolish personage is; instead, those who are more foolish than that person will consider that person to be a foolish, foolhardy fool when it is in fact themselves who are more foolish."_  
At any rate, her dream had come true. Heidi - Odd's younger sister - had been holding her baby daughter, when she had been shot by a cloaked man, who quickly disappeared afterwards. The girl had been too young to be a mother, at just thirteen years of age, but understandably, she was still distraught about it.  
Then, later on, as Anna and Kristoff were traveling to Corona, to temporarily rule the kingdom in the absence of the King, Queen, Princess and Prince Consort. During the trip, their ships had sunk, just as had happened in Elsa's dream.  
Naturally, now, coincidence or not, she was extremely worried that her dream would end up coming true. After all, the last time Hans was on the loose, he'd nearly killed Elsa and, even more worryingly, her sister. If he was free again, there was nothing to stop him trying to target them again, except now, they'd have to worry about Mia, too.  
Sometimes, Elsa really hated her royal heritage.  
Walking over to the window, the Queen scanned her kingdom, noting that though it was early in the morning - the clock in her room six o'clock - it was already bright out, the sun beaming warmly down upon the kingdom. She sighed as she opened the window, the warmth hitting her like one of her cousin, Rapunzel's, famous frying pans. She never felt the cold - it didn't effect her - but she could still feel warmth, and ironically, she preferred it lovely and hot, rather than the cold, despite her powers.  
After a few moments, Elsa grew bored once again, and strolled over to her door, opening it quietly and tip-toeing down the corridor, to where she knew her fiancée's room was located. Similarly to Kristoff, Odd had grown up in the wilds, spending roughly half of his life growing up in the Arendelle forests, where wolves and wild cats roamed freely, and where one had to be constantly on alert to survive.  
For a thirteen year old teenager, staying alert was even more vital - after running away from his abusive father, Lars, at such a young age, Odd had no defenses from predators, and had to rely on quick thinking alone. Now, though, while he was not nearly as burly as Kristoff, he'd developed quite good muscles, and wasn't one to pick a fight on at random.  
At any rate, after all of the years, Odd had adapted to be an early riser, and Elsa knew that he'd almost always be awake when she needed him.  
She recalled her nightmare as she knocked on his door, and cringed slightly at the thought. A few seconds passed, and Odd appeared in the doorway, his face lighting up at the sight of the Queen.  
"Oh, hey, Elsa," He greeted, grinning, "You're up early today."  
Elsa nodded, sadly. "Yeah," She commented, and Odd studied her face for a few seconds.  
"Bad dream?" He concluded, and she nodded in affirmation. He put his arm around her, and gently patted her back, as he pulled her into his room. "Let me just get my jacket on, then we can go and see if the kitchen staff will allow us to get a snack before breakfast."  
Elsa smiled, and Odd put on a face that said, 'I wonder...' and the Queen giggled at the comical expression.  
"Would a hot chocolate do for you, Ma'am?" He asked, and his fiancée nodded, happily, as Odd pulled on his jacket. He wore a basic army uniform, which Elsa had commissioned for him as something to wear - though he wasn't royalty, as he was the Queen's fiancée, he would be soon. Besides, as Elsa argued, he had a very important job - something he didn't agree with, but he didn't press the matter anyway - and as such, he had to look smart. In truth, he and Kristoff figured that she just wanted to get him used to the royal ways, and wanted him to fit in.  
"Come on, then, Ma'am." He said, taking Elsa's hand and kissing it, making her giggle and push him playfully, gently.  
"Stop teasing me," she replied, and she frowned grumpily. Odd chuckled, as he pulled her out of his room and into the corridors.  
"Okay, okay!" He replied, as he grinned cheekily and pulled her to the staircase, hopping onto the banister with Elsa on his lap, and they slid down together, laughing gleefully.  
Elsa glared at him, although she was only being playful. "You'll pay for that, Mister!" She teased, trying not to let her voice get too loud in case she woke the whole castle up. Lifting up the bottom of her dress, she gently pressed down on the ground, making the wood freeze up and Odd, caught off guard, slipped on the ice and fell.  
"Not fair!" He accused, "You've got an unfair advantage!"  
Elsa giggled, as she made herself and Odd a pair of ice skates each. Taking his hand, she began to drag him over to the kitchens, gliding easily over the ice while he stumbled a little. "Come on, Forest Boy." She said, and thawing the ice and their skates, they trotted into the kitchens to get a hot chocolate.

* * *

Mia laughed happily as she quietly crept out of bed and walked over to her toy chest, silently opening the lid and rummaging around for a few moments, before she found her prize - a small wolf toy that she was extremely attached to.  
"Ka-i!" She giggled, trying to say the name 'Kari' but not quite able to pronounce the letter R. She bounced the toy around, before toddling over to the window and glancing outside.  
"Ook, Ka-i!" She told her toy, pointing outside, before she frowned. Squinting, she noticed someone moving, and smiled. "Ka-i! Ka-i, Ook!" Giggling, she rushed to her door and opened it quietly, slipping out into the halls and running on her little feet towards the stairs. Rushing down, nearly tripping as she went, she hurriedly reached the entrance doors and skipped into the courtyard.  
"Ello!" She cried to the boy before her, who spun around quickly, panicked. He was standing by the stables, with Odd's horse, Storm Chaser, in his hands. He glanced nervously around, then dropped the rope, rushing to a rock and launching himself onto the horse's back.  
"Huh?" Mia thought, then, being a smart child, she understood what was going on. Storm Chaser was a very valuable horse, being a thoroughbred, and, it turned out, actually had amazing bloodlines. The only reason Odd had got him was because he had found the horse as a foal, injured in the forest, and had nursed him back to health.  
"You!" She shouted, pointing accusingly. "Fief! Fief!" She screamed, and there came a low growling as the doors to the castle burst open.  
Seier stood there, his hackles raised, growling threateningly, and the boy slapped Storm Chaser's rear, making the horse bolt. The large, now full-grown wolf chased after, but the thoroughbred was bred for speed, and quickly out-ran him. He stood, panting, at the edge of the courtyard, and howled regretfully. Mia toddled over to him, and wrapped her arms around the wolf, sobbing sadly.  
She did so love that stallion.

Anna awoke with a start at the sound of a wolf's howl, and she rushed quickly over to the window. The first thing she noticed was Storm Chaser running quickly away through the kingdom, a young boy upon his back, and though she couldn't see his face, she could tell he was panicked. Opening the window, she heard a child's crying, and her eyes shot down to the ground where Mia was sobbing, mortified. Anna gasped.  
"Mia!" She yelled, grabbing her dressing gown and launching herself out of the window, grabbing onto a rope and lowering herself down. Kristoff quickly followed suite.  
"Mia, Sweetie!" Anna cried, rushing to her daughter and engulfing her in a bone crushing hug. "Sweetie, you mustn't run away like that!"  
Mia sniffed. "No 'un away!" She said through the tears, "Jus' payin!"  
Kristoff frowned. "Paying for what?" He asked, and Anna couldn't help but giggle.  
"I think she means playing, Kris." She said, rolling her eyes, before she turned back to her daughter. "Still, though, Mia... You can't just come outside without telling Mummy. Me and Daddy will get scared."  
Mia's eyes trailed to her father. "Papa... Oo angy?" She asked, her voice heavy with guilt and regret.  
Kristoff's heart melted at the sight of his little girl, and he sighed. "No, Champ." He said, walking over and picking her up, throwing her up in the air and making her laugh. "We just want you to be safe. Okay?"  
Mia nodded, happier now that her doubts had been reassured.  
"Yes, papa!" She looked over to Anna, and extended her arms to her. "So-ee Mama." She apologised, and her mother giggled, as she bounced her on her hip.  
"Well, I'm awake now, anyway." She commented, "How about we go and wake Elsa up? We could pay a visit to the trolls - I need to talk with Bulda, anyway."  
Kristoff nodded.  
"Okay then." He said, before turning to Mia. "Do you want to go see the trolls?"  
Mia giggled, clapping her hands together. "Yes! 'Ulda, 'Abbie!"  
Anna laughed, as she swung her daughter around. "Yes, we can go and see Bulda and Grand Pabbie. Maybe you can play with the littles, too?"  
Mia cried out in joy. "Oo-ay!" She cheered, and the group began to make their way back to the castle. Anna smiled.  
"Well, we need to get you dressed. You can't go out in your night dress now, can you?"

* * *

Elsa smiled to herself as she fashioned a dress in front of her mirror. It wasn't too extravagant - quite a simple dress, really, similar to her ice dress that she'd made when she made her palace, as it was her favourite design. Twirling around to check she could move in it, she nodded to herself before going to find Odd, who was in his own room, doing goodness-knows-what.

_Odd_. Elsa smiled happily, and it amused her that when they'd first met, Anna had been trying to get them together. Amazingly, her plan actually worked for once.

Now, here she was, one and a half years later, and soon to be marrying him! They had waited a while to get engaged, but as a result of Anna's constant nagging, they agreed to be wed sooner than they had originally expected.

It was a month away, yet, but Elsa's stomach was a tangle of nerves, still. She loved Odd with all of her heart, and she knew the feelings were the same for him, but that didn't stop her worrying. It was fair enough - after all, the last time she had attended a marriage, her own marriage, her fiancée had abandoned her when she was attacked. What was more, it turned out, he was not only trying to use her as a 'baby factory', something she knew and accepted, although admittedly with much apprehension and anger, but he was also planning to use his to-be position in Arendelle to pay off the Southern Isles' debts.

That was something she couldn't forgiven him for, even though in the end, he'd wound up dead.

She shivered at the thought, at the way she could say it so bluntly.

Turning her head to look at her hand, she smiled at the ring on her finger. She'd never expected Odd to ever get her a ring - even with the money from his new position, which was more a present from the Queen to him than anything - but he'd managed to do so. Luckily, the jewellers in town was fond of the Queen, even indebted to her - she'd saved his young son from falling into the sea once - so he was only too happy to help Odd out and make a ring for Elsa.

It had been a little harder for Kristoff to get Anna a ring, admittedly. He'd fashioned her's himself, spending countless nights chipping away at a piece of ice, until he'd managed to make a beautiful accessory. He then had to sneak away from the castle in the dead of night to go to Grand Pabbie who, with his troll magic, was able to alter the ring, so that it was no longer cold and would not melt. He'd even made the eye of the ring into a diamond, so that the whole ring was a bright, shining blue colour, that matched Anna's beautiful, warm eyes.

Elsa stood up and walked over to her window. It was seven o'clock now - definitely enough time for Anna to get herself and Mia ready to go and visit the trolls.

Walking over to the door, she opened it carefully and ran to Odd's room, where she found her fiancée sitting at his desk, doodling.

Walking over, she whispered, "Hey, Odd," And he jumped in surprise. Taking a glimpse at his work, she smiled.

"Wow," she said, lost for words, and odd frowned at her.

"You don't like it?" He asked, cautiously, and Elsa was quick to respond.

"No, no, no!" She cried, "I love it! You really have a talent, Sweetie."

Odd smiled in return. "Thanks, Elsa." He said, and then stood up. "Come on, let's go." Turning, his hand brushed on the paper and the ink smudged. He sighed.

"Ah , well." He commented, "I'll fix it later."

Elsa nodded, and followed him out, after sneaking a quick glance at the image again. It was a drawing of her and Odd, arms around each other, laughing, but sadly, the ink had smudged the man's face out, leaving it unreadable and barely recognise able.

She frowned - she couldn't help but feel it meant something. Something important.

She shrugged as she rushed after Odd. After all, it was just a doodle, right? She smiled, reassuring herself as the pair ran through the corridors gleefully, and skidded to a stop in front of Anna's door.

"Come on, Baby Sister!" Elsa called through the door, knowing full well it annoyed Anna - she didn't like to be called a baby - but she didn't care anyway. "Let's go!"

Inside the room, Elsa could hear Anna huffing. "You're going to pay for that, Elsie." She replied, her voice too innocent when she said her sister's name. Elsa giggled, and dragged Odd away, rushing to get to the stables before Anna attacked her with a feather duster.

The pair laughed as they sprinted through the halls, but ended up falling on top of the hay very un gracefully, getting it stuck in their hair and on the clothes.

"Oops." Elsa laughed, and Odd chuckled too. He was sad that he'd lost Storm Chaser, naturally, but he wasn't too worried - he was convinced he'd find him again, so all's well that ends well.

* * *

**Okay! Second chapter is go! This didn't really have much of a plot to it, just a little fun chapter. Still, though, I would love to see what you thought!**

**Anyway, straight to the point: I'm going away to France today until the 6th, so I won't be able to update until then, probably. However, if I get the same review count or more on this chapter, I'll try and post a short sneak-peak chapter into Hans' plans! Whoo! Or if there's anything else you want to see in a quick 'sneak-peek' chapter leave your requests!**


	3. Chapter 3 - JYFrozenAddict

_**"You don't like it?" He asked, cautiously, and Elsa was quick to respond.**_

_**"No, no, no!" She cried, "I love it! You really have a talent, Sweetie."**_

_**Odd smiled in return. "Thanks, Elsa." He said, and then stood up. "Come on, let's go." Turning, his hand brushed on the paper and the ink smudged. He sighed.**_

_**"Ah , well." He commented, "I'll fix it later."**_

_**Elsa nodded, and followed him out, after sneaking a quick glance at the image again. It was a drawing of her and Odd, arms around each other, laughing, but sadly, the ink had smudged the man's face out, leaving it unreadable and barely recognise able.**_

_**She frowned - she couldn't help but feel it meant something. Something important.**_

_**She shrugged as she rushed after Odd. After all, it was just a doodle, right? She smiled, reassuring herself as the pair ran through the corridors gleefully, and skidded to a stop in front of Anna's door.**_

_**"Come on, Baby Sister!" Elsa called through the door, knowing full well it annoyed Anna - she didn't like to be called a baby - but she didn't care anyway. "Let's go!"**_

_**Inside the room, Elsa could hear Anna huffing. "You're going to pay for that, Elsie." She replied, her voice too innocent when she said her sister's name. Elsa giggled, and dragged Odd away, rushing to get to the stables before Anna attacked her with a feather duster.**_

_**The pair laughed as they sprinted through the halls, but ended up falling on top of the hay very un gracefully, getting it stuck in their hair and on the clothes.**_

_**"Oops." Elsa laughed, and Odd chuckled too. He was sad that he'd lost Storm Chaser, naturally, but he wasn't too worried - he was convinced he'd find him again, so all's well that ends well.**_

* * *

Hans smiled, as he turned the dead, black, mangy rat over a small, feebly flickering flame. The revolting creature had scuttled into his barren cell an hour before, no doubt searching for food, and now, here it was, slowly cooking, its neck snapped clean in half, leaving the animal dead. It had been difficult to make a fire, but even if he was a prisoner, he was also still a prince, so he had managed to convince the guards to let him have a couple of small planks of wood, to "patch up his broken bed".

He laughed as he pulled the rat away from the fire, and ripped off a chunk of the succulent flesh. It had been so long, years, since he'd eaten meat, and it made his mouth water.

After finishing off his little meal, he licked the scraps of meat off of the bones, and stored them under his pathetic little pillow. Climbing up onto his bed, he rested against the wall and licked the grease from his fingers, savouring the flavour, as he scowled.

He was a Prince, a man of noble blood - how had he been reduced to this?

Oh, right.

_Elsa and Anna. _

He growled in the back of his throat, as he clenched his fists angrily, and punched the wall, although this just resulted in pained knuckles. Groaning, he gently cradled the burning red skin, and the gears in his brain began to turn.

He'd been working on his master plan for a while, now - at least a month had passed since he had first thought of it, which was plenty of time to lay down the foundation for the scheme, so to speak.

He glanced up casually, as a guard came to his cell, a small painting clutched in his hand.

"Here," He said, dismissively, as he passed the book through the bars. "You have a minute, then it's time up."

Hans smiled charmingly. "Thank you, kind sir," He said, but the guard only huffed. Hans had to fight the urge to punch him for the rude dismissal of a Prince, but what was he now, but a worthless, lifeless body slowly wasting away in a dingy prison cell.

Well, not for long. He grinned as he studied the image of Odd, a portrait of him only made a month or so before. Even in prison, gossip travelled fast - he knew of the man's convection with Queen Elsa of Arendelle.

It couldn't be more perfect.

Handing the portrait back once he'd locked the picture in his mind, saved he face in his memories, he nodded briefly to the guard. After all, it was best to stay in their good books. At least for a while.

It was just too easy. He chuckled contentedly as he lay back down upon the wooden bed in his cell, and stared at the ceiling. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a knife - contraband, in the prison, but it made him feel powerful, even reduced to nothing as he was - and scratched off a mark for another day passed in his 'home'.

He smiled to himself as he crossed off the diagonal line of the tally. That made 32O groups of five - 32O families who he'd deal with as revenge.

A family a week. Plus a few stragglers here and there. Perhaps not quite perfect, but certainly nearly enough to make his time seem worthwhile. And yet, easily enough to land that final blow to Arendelle once and for all.

After all, you know what they always say:_ revenge is a dish best served cold._

* * *

**New chapter! Yay! Sorry it's so short, but hopefully it's sparked your imagination. What do you think Hans is plotting? Also, here's a little spoiler: Storm Chaser's capture does have some relevance. Can you guess?**

**As always, please leave reviews. I'd like everyone to at least write 'me' just so I know who's reading. That isn't so much to ask, right? **


	4. 4 - dedicated to drannikttam (guest)

**_It was just too easy. He chuckled contentedly as he lay back down upon the wooden bed in his cell, and stared at the ceiling. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a knife - contraband, in the prison, but it made him feel powerful, even reduced to nothing as he was - and scratched off a mark for another day passed in his 'home'._**

**_He smiled to himself as he crossed off the diagonal line of the tally. That made 32O groups of five - 32O families who he'd deal with as revenge._**

**_A family a week. Plus a few stragglers here and there. Perhaps not quite perfect, but certainly nearly enough to make his time seem worthwhile. And yet, easily enough to land that final blow to Arendelle once and for all._**

**_After all, you know what they always say: revenge is a dish best served cold._**

* * *

Odd laughed as he ran away from Elsa and Anna, who were both giggling gleefully, as they pelted him with snowballs. He knew he deserved it - he had, after all, just sent a tidal wave of water at them, sort of. And he was pretty proud of it, too - he'd made himself a simple canon, the physics of which he'd taught himself as a boy, and then had filled a large balloon with icy cold water.

It had been difficult to find the balloon - they were only recently invented, and often broke. It had taken him an hour to actually fill it with water without it breaking, a very difficult feat to achieve, but he'd managed it. After placing it in the catapult, he only had to wait for the two royals to come outside, something that was inevitable on such a warm day as today, and the moment they did, bam!

Of course, now, he really had no chance of escaping the snowball flying above Elsa's head, one metre in diameter. He called for Sven, considering his own horse was still nowhere to be found, but the reindeer just grunted, as if to say, "You deserve whatever you get."

Odd groaned, and Kristoff, who had just walked outside, chuckled at the scene before him, but he wasn't too concerned. This wasn't the first time it had happened, and besides, he didn't want to intervene - though he didn't love Elsa in the same way as he did Anna, she was like a sister to him, almost, and he cared for her. With the Queen's marriage just a week away, she was naturally very nervous, considering the chaos of before, so it was good to see her completely relaxed again.

"Help me, Kristoff!" Odd called out, but the man shook his head.

"You wish!" He called out, and he glanced at the massive snowball above Elsa's head. He couldn't help but laugh at Odd's amusing worried face, and he chuckled at the sopping wet Queen and Princess following him, their hair plastered to their face, their dresses clinging to their bodies, but they were both too caught up in chasing their 'prey' to be concerned about their garments.

Mia, hearing the commotion, came trotting out on her short little legs, and squealed as her mother, Aunt and to-be-uncle went running past, and, giggling, she opened her palm, sending a snowball flying at Odd. He grunted as it connected with the back of his head, and he tripped in surprise.

Elsa laughed, mock evilly. "There's no where to run, little man!" She teased, as the snow fell over and buried him.

Odd sat up, coughing and spluttering as he spat snow from his mouth, and he turned to look at Mia.

"That was you, wasn't it, Mia!" He accused, but his voice was lighthearted. Mia laughed, as Odd stood up and made his own snowball, chasing her.

The child squealed as she ran away. "Papa! Mama!" She cried out in her high pitched, young child's voice. "Odd chase! Odd chase me!"

Anna laughed, and ran over to catch up, while Elsa giggled and walked over to Kristoff to watch from the sidelines.

"There's no where to run, Princess!" Odd called out, as he cackled playfully. He threw the snowball, but Mia was ready, and she laughed as she sidestepped, her little feet seeming to skim the ground. Odd's mouth fell open in surprise - most one year olds probably would have just stood there, then began crying when they were hit. Admittedly, he didn't like it when they cried, but Mia had always been a quiet baby anyway.

"Ha, ha, Odd!" Mia called out, teasing him, as she stuck out her tongue playfully. For her age, she was very advanced, at least three or four months ahead of what she should be, according to the average child, intelligence wise. "You miss me!"

She laughed as she ran again, and then she skipped over to the field, where her little reindeer calf was stood, munching some sweet grass happily, with Anna's grey mare, Misty, and Elsa's white gelding, Syklon. The little doe bleated in greeting, bobbing her head happily as her friend came over, and the toddler jumped, trying to get on the animal's back.

The reindeer lowered her head again to take another mouthful of grass, as she bent to allow the child to get on her back. Mia laughed, as she locked her eyes with Odd, as if she were challenging him.

"Go, 'Ysse!" She called out, mispronouncing the name 'Lysse', but the doe understood anyway, and set off at a trot, with the toddler clinging tightly onto her fur, bouncing around as she went.

The girl was an amazing rider, at least for her age, as ever since she'd been ten months old, give or take a little, she'd been riding. Starting the day that her father had brought the little deer back from his work in the mountains, after finding her following him and Sven all the way to the kingdom, the young Princess had been riding, at first held by her mother, but quickly, the child showed a natural talent for it. Soon, she was easily able to sit up on her own in walk, and as it was, so long as she held on firmly and wrapped her legs tightly around the animal's belly, she could trot with ease, although she hadn't mastered sitting in her seat without bouncing.

She looks like a little rag doll, Odd thought to himself as the pair came bouncing over to him. As Lysse was so young and growing so quickly, not only would it be unfair to make her a saddle, but impractical as well. She'd easily go through them every month, and Mia didn't seem to mind riding bare-back.

Mid-way between their starting point and Odd, who Mia had been planning on coating in a nice, thick layer of snow as punishment, Lysse skidded to a stop, and quietly grunted, as she flicked her ears back and forth, with her nostrils flaring.

It was obvious something was not right. Sven had shepherded the two Fjord horses to the opposite side of the paddock, as the leader of the three animal herd, minus Lysse, and would bite at them every time they tried to see what was happening.

Meanwhile, the little, light-brown reindeer calf was beginning to sidestep nervously, and Mia, shocked by the sudden movement, slipped onto the floor. It wasn't a long fall - about a third of a metre, if that, but she landed with a grunt anyway, more from surprise than pain.

Lysse now had her back turned to Mia, and was snorting at the long grass before her, pawing the ground and throwing her head around, as if she were a grown male reindeer, displaying his antlers threateningly. Not that she had any, but still.

A slight rustle came in the grass, as Anna rushed over to her daughter, with the other adults alongside, concerned and, at the same time, curious.

Lysse bleated loudly, before she reared up on her little legs and pawed the air. She began to attack the grass, flattening it, until all that remained was a delicate flower, a bright red rose.

Anna giggled. "What's all the fuss over a flower?" She asked, happily, but then something struck her, from a book she'd once read. A Shakespeare novel.

Lysse grunted and snorted and began thrashing around, as if she were possessed, and she stomped on top of the flower, squishing it cleanly. Still, the petals seemed to be alive, as they rippled and moved, and a little head peeked out from underneath.

Mia gasped, as she tried to pull Lysse away. "Bad!" She cried at the creature. "Bad snake! Mean! Go 'way! Go 'way!" She continued to tug at her reindeer's fur, but the animal would not budge, still staring down with the snake. The serpent slithered out a little further, and Elsa gasped, shocked and scared.

"G-get away from it!" She cried, desperately, as she sent a beam of ice at the creature, which dodged it at incredible speed. "It's a, a black mamba! They're one of the deadliest snakes on earth!"

Anna gasped, and quickly snatched Mia up, who, wanting to save her pet calf began kicking wildly, as her mother' stress began to freeze up, despite the warm weather. The older Princess groaned, as she quickly retreated from the snake.

Everyone followed suite, besides from Lysse, who was now trying to step of the snake, it seemed, unaware of the danger she was in, only interested in destroying the threat.

"But, Elsa," Odd said, "Black mambas live in Africa, not Norway!"

The Queen groaned, as she squeezed her eyes shut and, squinting, aimed at the snake again.

"I know," She muttered, her eyes wide with fear as the snake turned it's head to her, beady eyes staring. "But here it is."

Kristoff nodded in affirmation, as he looked around for something to throw at the snake. "Yeah," he said, distractedly. "That's definitely a Mamba."

Elsa frowned in concentration, as she tried to hit the creature once again, but it was no use. Odd pulled her away.

"Elsa. Those things can move at twenty kilometres and hour. You'll never hit it."

The queen's eyes widened, and Anna looked at her sister worriedly, distracted, and it was just enough time for Mia to squirm out of her grasp and run to Lysse.

"P'ease, 'Ysse!" she called, as she wrapped her chubby arms around the snake's neck and tried to pull away, but the calf was going nowhere. Anna shrieked, as she ran - or, rather, tried to run - to her daughter, but Kristoff grabbed her in his strong, muscular arms.

"Shush, Anna." He reassured. "Lysse will take care of her. As it is, the snake's focused on Elsa and Odd, mostly, but if you run over to it then you'll get bitten and, then, so will Mia, in turn."

Anna sent a despairing glance towards her daughter. Kristoff took her hand, gently.

"Come on," He whispered, "If we can go around the edge, we can get Mia without alerting the snake, hopefully."

Anna was terrified now. "And if we do?"

Kristoff frowned. "We improvise." He replied, shrugging, and then, with the careful footsteps of a man used to stalking prey and hiding from predators, a true mountain man, he led the way, sneaking around silently.

Mia could see her parents coming, but she ignored them, as she continued to tug at Lysse. She let out a yell of frustration, and then, the snake's head whipped around, glaring at her. The sudden outburst was, to the serpent, a challenge, or a threat, and it riled it up greatly. Raising itself up, it flicked its tongue menacingly, and lunging for Mia, who only managed to avoid it when she slipped over on some ice Elsa had conjured up.

Anan screamed, and by now, a crowd of villagers was gathering at the gates. She rushed in quickly, trying to reach for her daughter while avoiding the lunging head which could kill her just like that. Kristoff rushed in to help, making noise, trying to confuse it enough to get behind and restrain it, perhaps strangle it.

Odd, having also grown up in the wilderness, quickly caught on, and rushed to help Kristoff, while Elsa ran over also, taking advantage of the snake's distraction to freeze the lower end of it's tail to the ground.

Mia ran to her mother's arms, petrified, and Anna quickly backed away, trying to comfort her scared, trembling daughter, who was now sobbing, muttering, "Save 'Ysse, Mama." The little voice broke Anna's heart, but she didn't know what she could do.

The snake lunged, confused at the increase in noise, riled up by the fear floating on the air. Its teeth scraped gently against Lysse's side, and the reindeer calf bleated, rearing and stomping her two front cloven hooves on the thick, scaly body, bucking as she did, transferring all of her weight onto the snake. Angrily, the creature flicked it's tongue, this time stroking the leg of Odd's pants, and Kristoff snarled.

Almost in synchronisation, the mountain man wrapped his strong hands tightly around the serpent's neck, blocking its airways, as Elsa's magic formed an icicle through the body.

The snake hissed feebly, before it fell to the floor, dead from the cold, and suffocation.

* * *

Anna frowned as she watched a dozing Kristoff cuddling a sleeping Mia close to him. The little toddler was definitely a daddy's girl, and in the future, she was going to be so spoilt.

Oh, life. It was such a fleeting thing. And to think, it seemed only yesterday she and Elsa were playing together as kids.

Before the accident, of course.

Still, it made her see, for a minute, how precious everything was. She smiled warmly, and a hope registered in her mind.

_Hopefully me and Kris will be able to have lots more children. _She thought_, Hopefully everything will work out okay. _

She glanced down at her abdomen and rested a hand on her stomach. Oh, how wonderful it would be to have another child, a sibling for Mia, and a young baby around the castle once again. Certainly, some aspects were bleak - the nappy changing was horrible, and Anna was grateful Mia was showing an interest in being potty trained now. Still, what were servants for?

She giggled to herself, although she knew full well that she'd never lay off all the not quite so nice (_aka, horrible_, she thought silently to herself) jobs on the servants. That would make the child feel like their's, not hers, and she didn't want that.

Just then, the door opened, and the Queen entered, her hair up rather un-regally in a towel. Elsa sat down next to her, and Anna, unfazed by the appearance, turned to her sister.

"I've been wondering, Elsa..." She said, the happy thoughts of earlier replaced with more serious ones. Anna was still slightly shaken up after the day's events. "How did a black mamba get here, all the way from Africa?"

Elsa sighed. "I think it was sent here. But I'm not sure why."

Anna looked down at her hands, then at the small rose in a vase on the table. "_Look like the innocent flower,_" she recited from memory, "_But be the serpent underneath it._"

Elsa looked around herself worriedly, and Anna instantly knew that what she'd said had hit home.

"Is there a connection?" She asked, more to hear her fears declined than to .

They weren't.

"What does it mean?" The Princess queried, her face a mask attempting to hide the fear, the sorrow, and the pain under it.

"It means," the Queen began, as she stood up, wobbled, and fell down again. Her ice-blue eyes were shining fearfully. "That someone's out for our blood, once again."

Anna glanced at Elsa, then Kristoff, and finally Mia, before she lay her head in her hands and cried. Elsa wrapped her arm comfortingly around her sister's shoulders, and together, exhausted, they fell asleep like that, their hearts heavy.

* * *

**First thing's first - I only got _a third_ of my normal reviews last chapter. Even if it was short, I was a little disappointed. _Please,_ I beg you, review this chapter! It helps me improve my writing, because to be honest with myself, I'm a pretty rubbish writer :P**

**Next! So I got a review, pointing out that Odd's personality and his ambitions, etc, are quite unclear, so I thought I'd let you guys have a say. What sort of things do you think he'd be trying to achieve, what sort of things do you imagine he'd want to achieve? **

**Personally, I'd always intended Odd to be quite brave - growing up in the wilderness would do that to you, right? - and very intelligent. Perhaps not in an educated sense, I can't imagine him doing physics and mathematics that require equations, because he never had a proper education, but I do believe he'd be strategic, and would be able to work things out himself. He's also shown to be very caring, and loyal, and quite athletic, at least in the sense that he's a very good horse rider. He'd also be very quick and light on his feet.**

**What do you think? Is there anything you'd like to add about his character, and what do you think his ambitions are? Have your say, and make Odd the sort of man you want him to be!**

**Also, don't forget to leave your opinion of the chapter too! :P**


	5. Chapter 5 - dedicated to Charmed (guest)

**_"I've been wondering, Elsa..." She said, the happy thoughts of earlier replaced with more serious ones. Anna was still slightly shaken up after the day's events. "How did a black mamba get here, all the way from Africa?"_**

**_Elsa sighed. "I think it was sent here. But I'm not sure why."_**

**_Anna looked down at her hands, then at the small rose in a vase on the table. "Look like the innocent flower," she recited from memory, "But be the serpent underneath it."_**

**_Elsa looked around herself worriedly, and Anna instantly knew that what she'd said had hit home._**

**_"Is there a connection?" She asked, more to hear her fears declined than to ._**

**_They weren't._**

**_"What does it mean?" The Princess queried, her face a mask attempting to hide the fear, the sorrow, and the pain under it._**

**_"It means," the Queen began, as she stood up, wobbled, and fell down again. Her ice-blue eyes were shining fearfully. "That someone's out for our blood, once again."_**

**_Anna glanced at Elsa, then Kristoff, and finally Mia, before she lay her head in her hands and cried. Elsa wrapped her arm comfortingly around her sister's shoulders, and together, exhausted, they fell asleep like that, their hearts heavy._**

* * *

"There! Finished!" Anna said, and Elsa turned to look in the dressing-room mirror. She gasped, smiling.

"Wow!" She said, smiling at her reflection, and she admired her hair. Anna had put it up for her in a style similar to the one she'd worn on the day of her coronation four and a half years ago, and she'd managed to intertwine small flakes diamonds, in the shape of snowflakes, into the white braids too. The light shone down, and reflected off of the precious gems, making the Queen's hair seem to shine.

Anna smiled, satisfied with her sister's response, and then she went over to the walk-in-wardrobe that she and her sister shared, to find Elsa's dress. She paused for a minute, before she found something that caught her eye, and a mischievous glint formed in them.

"Anna?" Elsa queried, as she frowned at her sister's delay. "What are you doing?" She sighed, as she returned to the mirror, concentrating as she fashioned herself a pair of earrings, shaped as snowflakes. She didn't have her ears pierced - her parents had refused it when she was younger, and she respected this as a tribute to their memory. Besides, she didn't usually like to wear too much jewellery, because she didn't feel she really needed it. Only, today was a special occasion - she'd make an exception.

As she froze the snowflakes onto her ears, there came a rustling from inside the wardrobe, and Anna jumped out happily, crying out, "What is _this_!"

She wore a very bright orange dress, with a lime green stripe down the middle. It had too much padding, with massive bulges around Anna's hips, and her backside, and made her look extremely comical. The Princess giggled.

"Ooh!" She teased, "Ooh la la!" She span around, as if trying to see over the massive padding (and failing to do so). She grinned, as she began to talk again. "My hips are here, my hips are there, oh!" She put her hand over her mouth as if she was embarrassed or shocked. "Pardon my behind, young man, didn't see you there! Didn't mean to knock you down!"

Elsa laughed at her sister, and she shook her head. Anna looked at her sister suspiciously.

"And where, may I ask, did you get this?" She teased, and Elsa blushed, embarrassed.

"It was just a gift!" She replied defensively, though her voice had a light-hearted tone. "From one of those... big countries. Now, stop goofing around!"

Anna giggled as she was pushed back to the wardrobe. "Oh! I cannot fit through the doorway!"

Elsa sighed at her sister's antics, as she got up and went to find the beautiful pair of high-heeled shoes Odd had brought her. After the teasing from her sister had ended, she was now feeling a little nervous, the butterflies in her stomach distracting her a little, but she was excited, too.

Just three hours to go.

* * *

A knock sounded on the door, and Ida's voice came through the wood. "It's time to leave, your Majesty." She said, "I need you and the Princesses outside in five minutes, so that you can go to the church."

Elsa swallowed. "Thank you, Ida." She said, dismissing her, and then turned to her sister, her eyes wide.

"Oh my gosh, Anna!" She cried out, a new wave of fear washing over her. "I can't do this! What if Odd says no? What if something happens again like last time! I don't even know if I'm ready for marriage!"

Anna laughed, as she placed a gentle hand on her older sister's shoulder, comfortingly. "Hey, hey, hey." She said, softly, "Everything will be fine. I promise you."

"But-" Elsa began, the natural worries of one's wedding taking control. Anna took her hand.

"Elsa..." She began, and then took a breath. "_No one will shut you out again, No one will slam the door, No one will make you keep your distance anymore!"_

Her voice had a melodic sound, and even without listening to the lyrics, Elsa would still have relaxed at the song.

"_Because unlike things were before, I will never leave your side,"_

_"Because unlike things were before, you will be one lucky bride,"_

_"We will head down to the church together,"_

_"You do not have anything to fear,"_

_"Because unlike things were before,"_

_"I will be right here!"_

Anna smiled at her sister, and squeezed her hand gently.

"Come on, Sis." She said, as she bent down to pick up Mia.

Elsa grinned. "Let's do this."

* * *

Olaf and Mia were skipping gleefully down the middle of the aisle, spreading flower petals with their arms interlocked. The snowman was laughing, his head bouncing around atop his body, while Mia was giggling happily and trying her hardest not to trip. It was difficult for her to skip on her chubby little legs and swing the basket at the same time.

Odd's breath caught in his throat as the large doors to the now restored church swung open revealing the Queen, smiling nervously, but it was clear she was excited too. Anna was stood next to her, taking up the role of escort, and together, they began to walk down the aisle.

The princess was dressed in a beautiful, 'safe' dress that reached down to the ground. It was a simple gown, an a-line design and a deep, royal-blue in colour, with embroidered flowers in a lighter shade around the neck. The bottom of the dress was slightly more flowing than the top, and when the Princess spun around as she walked, it twirled slightly around her legs, like waves surrounding her.

However, her appearance was easily overlooked when one glanced at her sister beside her. Elsa's dress was breathtaking, the same colour of freshly fallen snow. It was tight at the top, and strapless, with a crystal white sash just below. From there, the fabric changed into a soft, fine tulle material, and it made a net bottom, that glided and twirled with every step Elsa took, as gentle and flowing as the soft snow of a winter's morning.

Similarly to her hair, Elsa's dress was embroidered with gems, a mixture of diamonds and other various gemstones, which made her appear to shine in the sunlight through the repaired stain-glass windows. Her tiara rested gently upon her head, giving her an air of innocence and femininity, and the opal necklace around her neck complimented the light, baby-blue snowflake earrings perfectly.

"Wow," Odd whispered to himself, as she neared him. She was absolutely radiant.

Finally, after what felt like years to Odd, Elsa came to a stop beside him, and he gently took her hand.

"Ready?" She whispered, and he nodded in response, smiling warmly. Elsa retracted her hand, and smiled, and then the pair turned to the priest.

"We are gathered here today..."

* * *

Hans dug his fingers into the crevices in the stone walls of his cell, relieving some of the tension that had built up inside of him. He knew exactly what day it was, and the events of the day were causing his mind to reel in anger, over loaded with his jealousy and fury as it desperately tried to think of a way out.

The wedding of Queen Elsa and that stupid little nobody, Odd. He wasn't even a villager - he simply lived in the forest! How could he achieve so much, over him, Prince Hans!

Pounding the wall twice, Hans took a deep breath in as his steely, cold eyes glared daggers at the wall, as if he could break it with a glance.

_I must remain calm_, he thought to himself, _Everything will work out fine. I need this marriage to go ahead. _

Yet, even though the joining of Queen Elsa and Odd was necessary for his little scheme, the knowledge did little to reassure him, to quell his feelings. It wasn't that he liked the Queen - quite the contrary, the brat and her sister had gotten in his way too many times - and he was not jealous of Odd's love for her rather his position.

As a nobody, Odd would never be more than a Prince in the eyes of the law; though a woman may marry a king and become the monarch alongside him, a common man could not take such a prestigious title simply by marrying a Queen, only receiving the next best. Still, even if Odd would not be a king, people would still see him as one.

Something Hans should have been.

Taking a few more deep breaths, the Prince placed his hands behind his head and breathed out again.

He just had to stay calm. In a few hours, the Queen would be married, and then his scheme could really begin to unfold.

* * *

"I do." Elsa said, and she beamed at Odd, who returned the gesture just as happily.

"Then I now pronounce you husband and wife!" The priest concluded. "You may kiss."

Elsa and Odd looked at each other, and then, completely oblivious of everyone surrounding them, the Queen practically jumped on him as she wrapped her arms around his neck, and he placed his on her back. The audience cheered loudly as their lips met in a long, lingering kiss, and after what felt like forever, they drew back, gasping for air and beaming wildly at each other.

"I love you," Elsa whispered in his ear. Odd grinned as he reached up to brush a small lock of hair from her face, which had fallen out of place.

"And I love you, too."

Taking Elsa's hand, the pair then raised their hand into the air and ran happily down the aisle, to much cheering, and climbed into the carriage which was waiting outside for them. Anna was the first person to leave the church, whistling happily, and Mia came toddling not long after, crying out "Love 'oo, Auntie Elsie!" as she threw the remains of her petals at the carriage. A few got stuck in Elsa's hair, and she giggled, while Odd chuckled at his new niece.

"Are you ready?" Odd asked his newly-wedded wife, and she nodded, but then shook her head.

"Oh, no, no! Wait!" She said, and leaned out of the carriage window, a bouquet of flowers in her hands, and she threw it back, so that it flew through the air and, strangely enough, landed in Sven's antlers. The reindeer looked at it in surprise, snorted, and shook them off of his head.

Elsa giggled, as the carriage began to pull away, waving happily.

* * *

"Oh my gosh, oh my gosh!" Anna cried out, "I'm so excited!" Bending down to pick up Mia, who was playing with her little toy wolf, she climbed into the carriage which was waiting for her. "Come on, Kristoff!"

Mia gurgled. "Come 'n, papa!" She culled out, and Kristoff laughed as he ran over.

"Okay, okay, I'm coming." He replied, as he climbed in next to Anna. Mia laughed gleefully as the carriage pulled away, and kicked her legs back and forth happily, as she bounced her little toy wolf around.

Kristoff rubbed her hair affectionately, and Anna scowled, pushing his shoulder gently.

"Kris!" She scolded, "You've messed up her hair!"

Kristoff grinned sheepishly. "Sorry. For being late, too. I was trying to make Sven and Seier feel better. I think they're a little sore at not being invited."

Anna laughed. "Really? A reindeer and a wolf want to come to a wedding party?"

Kristoff shrugged. "Seems like it."

Mia thrust her wolf toy towards her parents, shaking him around gently. "Look! Look! Mama! 'olf want go!"

Anna giggled quietly, as she patted the toys head, making her daughter giggle. "Of course he does, Sweetie." She said, before turning to Kristoff and rolling her eyes amusedly.

"See, Anna?" Kristoff said, his voice saying 'well, duh!'. "If Wolf wants to go, then obviously Sven and Seier want to go too!"

Anna giggled, and she glanced out of the window. She gasped.

"Kris! Kris! Kris!" She yelled excitedly, as she reached over to grab Mia. "We're here! We're here! We're here!"

Kristoff shook his head, laughing as he got out of the carriage, and offered his hand to Anna to help her down. She jumped down gently, grinning, and Mia squealed.

"Yay!"

* * *

Elsa and Odd spun slowly to the beautiful, calming music, their first dance together as a married couple. The Queen sighed, as she closed her eyes and rested her head gentle upon Odd's shoulder, as the pair continued to spin rhythmically.

After what felt like hours, the music subsided, and Anna cheered, loudly. The watching crowd slowly made their way onto the dance floor, and soon, everyone was spinning happily to the music, laughing as they danced together to the much more energetic and lively tune.

Anna laughed as she and Kristoff danced together, happily. Though she truly did love her husband, she wasn't nearly so fond of his dancing skills. He was strong, certainly, but he had two left feet, and despite all of the Princess' coaching in dancing, he still could not move with the music. Either way, Anna didn't really mind - everyone had to have their flaws, something she knew better than most.

It just happened that one of his flaws was his dancing skills, but as the pair danced together, she could forget it. Being with her husband was enough, even if she did look silly dancing with him.

Then again, she made a fool of herself a lot on her own, without her husband's help. It didn't really make much difference in the end.

She laughed as she spun off to another man, and she sent a quick glance towards the woman dancing with Kristoff to say 'sorry'. When she noticed the way the lady was looking at him, though, she snapped her head back, trying to hide any sincere feelings towards her, and concealing her snarl.

The man she was dancing with placed his hands on her waist and lifted her up, and Anna was shocked for a moment, not expecting it. The man below her lost his grip upon her and she fell with a thud. The music instantly stopped and everyone turned to look.

Elsa, who had still been dancing with Odd, rushed over quickly to help her sister up. Kristoff was also by her side in an instant.

"Anna! Anna!" Elsa called out, "Are you okay?"

Anna groaned slightly, and accepted Kristoff's arm to help her up. She blinked a few times, muttering, "Yeah, yeah, I think I'm okay..." quietly, but the Queen didn't look very reassured.

"Continue dancing, everyone! Nothing to see here! Everything's fine!" She called out, and she helped Kristoff lead Anna over to one of the chairs at the side of the room.

"Just... stay here for a minute." She said, as Mia toddled over to sit next to her mother.

"Mama? You 'kay?" She asked, and Anna nodded, a little shaky but okay otherwise.

"Yes, yes, Sweetie." She said, quietly. "I'll be fine." She turned to Kristoff and her sister. "You two go back to the dance. I'll be okay."

Elsa looked unsure, but an insistent glance from Anna, she sighed and obliged. Placing her hand on her shoulder, she said, "Just call me over if you need anything, 'Sis." Anna nodded, and Elsa went back to Odd.

Kristoff stood up, and smiled at his wife. "Well, I'm not going to go back to the dance. I'm not exactly brilliant, and besides, there'd be an odd number if I did."

Anna laughed a little, and Kristoff grinned. "D'you want me to grab you a drink?" He asked, and the Princess nodded slightly.

Kristoff nodded, and turned around to get her a drink of lemonade, but he spun around quickly when he heard Anna's gasp, missed by everyone else over the noise of the music and dancing.

"Anna!" He said, worriedly. "What's wrong, Anna?" He bent down and took her hand, looking into her large, scared eyes. Mia was whimpering, whispering 'Mama?', and Kristoff turned to her.

"Mia, can you go and get Auntie Elsa for me please?" He requested, and Mia, confused and worried about her mother, obliged, running off quickly in amongst all of the dancers, clutching Wolf the her chest in fear.

Anna tried to stand up, and the first thing she noticed was how wet her skirt felt. Her eyes widened even more than before, and she nervously looked down, to see that the bottom of her dress was completely soaked in blood.

Kristoff quickly noticed, and looked around nervously.

"Okay, okay, Anna," He said, trying not to let his voice waver in fear. It would only scare her more. "We'll go out of the back door. Here." Taking off his jacket, he tied it around his wife's skirt, and took her hand, helping her along the wall to the exit.

Sitting her down on the floor, he said quietly, "Wait here." and then left.

It was a few minutes before he returned, but during those few minutes, Anna could hear Kristoff and Elsa's worried whispering. When he got back, with Mia in tow, he bent down and picked his wife up, bridal style, and led her back to the carriage. Gently laying her down upon two of the seats, he then got in himself, resting Anna's head on his lap, and pulled Mia in also, then he instructed the driver to get back to the castle, quickly.

"It's okay, Anna." He soothed, and she smiled weakly up at him. "You'll be okay."

Anna looked at him, her eyes pained and scared. "I'll be fine, but... But what about you?"

He gently moved a lock of hair out of her face. "Don't worry about me." He said, and Anna smiled weakly, remembering when he'd said that before. He was always so sweet, even now. There was no doubt he knew what had happened, and though so many men would have been furious at her for it, even if it wasn't her fault, he didn't say a word.

It was what she loved about him.

* * *

Elsa knocked on Kristoff and Anna's bedroom door quietly, and after a few moments, the man opened the door slowly.

The Queen peered into the room nervously, and saw Anna sleeping quietly on the bed.

"Is she okay?" Elsa asked, worriedly, and Kristoff nodded very slightly.

"I hope so."

* * *

**So, here's the next chapter!**

**Firstly, thanks to everyone who reviewed before! Your reviews have made me appreciate my work more.**

**Secondly, though I had a slightly better response last chapter, I still didn't get as many reviews as I'd have liked. Even if it's just a 'nice', please leave a review, because every little helps!**

**Thanks for reading. If it helps, here's the review structure to help you know what to write.**

**1 ) Opinion of the chapter**

**2 ) What was your favourite part? Why?**

**3 ) Were there any parts you didn't like / could have been improved?**

**4 ) If so, why or how? ****  
**

**5 ) What do you want to happen later on? What are your hopes for the story?**

**Oh, and just quickly, how come almost all of my reviews come from guests? Come on, members! You can do it too! I have faith in you!**


	6. Chapter 6 - dedicated to natsuxlucyONLY

_**Elsa knocked on Kristoff and Anna's bedroom door quietly, and after a few moments, the man opened the door slowly.**_

_**The Queen peered into the room nervously, and saw Anna sleeping quietly on the bed.**_

_**"Is she okay?" Elsa asked, worriedly, and Kristoff nodded very slightly.**_

_**"I hope so."**_

* * *

A day passed, and there was no word about Anna, but Elsa wasn't too worried, at least not at first. Kristoff kept insisting that the Princess was fine, just a little shaken up, and though he refused to tell his sister-in-law what was wrong with her, he promised that she'd be up and about soon enough.

After just less than a week, though, Odd had begun to feel a little angry, worried for his newly-wedded wife, who was slowly working herself into insanity, surely, with worry about her younger sister. Anna had refused completely to leave her room, and had to have all of her meals delivered to her bedside. Kristoff had taken to sleeping on a sofa which he had requested be moved next to his wife's door, for she was now refusing to speak to even him, and would not let him into their room, except to get dressed. The room was even off limits to Mia, who was becoming quieter with each passing day, and had taken to sitting numbly outside her mother's room, whining quietly to be let in.

Naturally, on the eighth day, when Anna finally emerged from her cocoon, everyone in the castle was in an uproar. She hadn't come out of her cell, as many of the staff called it, for long, not even an hour, but, it seemed, she had grown a little less numb from the incident on Elsa's wedding night.

When she went to see her sister, later on in the day when she emerged once again, she'd had a good time, and had forgotten about the pains of the past for a short while, enjoying the Queen's company and simply having a laugh. She'd become a little more reserved when Elsa asked subtly about what had happened, more a prompt than anything, as Kristoff had recommended - he knew Anna was still sore about the incident - but when Elsa suggested they go to the local bakery and get a chocolate cake each, she cheered up.

It was on the tenth day that Anna finally returned to her normal self.

Elsa was sat in her new bedroom which she shared with Odd, on her bed, as she smiled to herself, watching gentle snowflakes swirling around Mia's head. The child laughed at her own power, loving using her magical abilities.

Though she was barely over eighteen months old, Anna and Elsa had already decided before the wedding that it would be best to begin to teach Mia how to control her powers at an early age. Although Elsa was certain people wouldn't really mind the child's powers, which were identical to her own, Anna couldn't help worrying - as a young child, it was quite possible that Mia would lose focus and, perhaps, she could hurt someone.

Anna hadn't wanted people to be scared of her, after all.

Elsa smiled, and then said to her niece, "Okay, Sweetie," which caught the girl's attention. "I want you to try something. Can you make a little pile of snow, please."

Mia frowned for a moment, processing the question, but the smiled a few seconds later, nodding as she waved her hand and a small amount of powder materialised of the floor. The child clapped happily, and before Elsa could say anything, she had jumped, landing in the snow, completely buried. She then sat up quickly, laughing as she threw the snow everywhere.

Elsa giggled. "You're a lot like your Mummy." She said, fondly, and Mia smiled happily. "Anyway, Sweetie. Now, I want you to try and thaw the snow."

Mia frowned, and Elsa quickly realised that the girl didn't understand.

"Faw?" She repeated, and the Queen smiled at her.

"Make it go away, Mia." She elaborated. Mia nodded, her mouth a perfect circle as she said, "Oooh!" In reply. "Why you not say?"

Elsa laughed, as the toddler scrunched up her face in concentration. Creating snow and ice came naturally to her, but getting rid of it was more of an art.

"Remember how much Mummy and Daddy love you, that will help."

For just a moment, Mia looked like she was going to get somewhere, but then she failed, and a small tear leaked from her eye. "Mama no talk wiv me." She said, sadly, as she wiped the small tear away with the back of her hand. "She doesn't like me."

Elsa looked sadly down at her niece, and bent to pick her up, cuddling her.

"No, no. That's not it." She said gently, "Mummy's just a little bit upset now because... Because... She lost her teddy bear and can't find it."

Mia looked up at Elsa with large, bright blue eyes."Really?" She muttered, and Elsa nodded enthusiastically. This seemed to satisfy the girl, who climbed down and focused on the now-scattered pile of snow again. She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to thaw the powder away, but then there came a loud giggle, and Elsa knew that any hope of Mia achieving anything today was now gone.

"Hey, guys!" Olaf called as he toddled into the room. "Hey, Mia! How's it going?"

Mia frowned. "How what goin'?" She asked, not quite understanding, and Olaf giggled.

"How are you?" He asked again, and Mia nodded happily.

"I'm okay." She said, then she looked at her hands and gasped excitedly. "Oh! Oh! Oh!" She cried out in her young, high pitched voice. "O'af? Wanna build a snow-man?"

Olaf looked just as excited as the young girl before him, as he lifted his head up, gasping happily. "Oh, yes! Let's go! We can make one in the garden, and Elsa can make a flurry for her so she doesn't melt!"

Mia looked completely bamboozled - Olaf's speech was much too fast for her, and she frowned, lost, but she just shrugged and nodded anyway. "Okay, O'af!" She said, agreeing, and ran out with her hand in the snowman's own, wooden one, and Elsa sighed as they ran off. She'd thought Mia might have made some progress today, but at least she'd have a good time.

Thawing away the snow for Mia, Elsa was slightly startled as there came a gentle knock on the door, and she called out, "Come in!" with a happy tone of voice. She turned, and was surprised to see Anna standing in her doorway. It was only the morning, and her sister usually stayed in her room until lunch.

"Anna!" Elsa gasped, and her face broke out into a massive smile. "Oh, come sit down! How are you?"

Anna smiled at her sister, and muttered, "I'm fine, thanks." in a quiet voice. Elsa looked unconvinced, and she frowned at her Anna, her face asking 'what's wrong?'

The princess sighed. "I can't hide it, can I?" She asked, and laughed a little to herself, but it seemed forced. "I can't stay in my room forever." She admitted, "And I think Kristoff deserved to be allowed to actually sleep in a bed again."

Elsa giggled, and wrapped her arm around her sister. "I'm glad you're back, sis." She said, and Anna smiled. She then paused.

"Huh." She sighed. "Look, you deserve to know the truth. And you're my sister. I can't hide things from you."

Elsa looked both interested and worried, as she took Anna's hand and held it tight. "Whatever it is, I'll be here for you."

Anna smiled gently, and she looked at the ceiling, took a breath, and then let it out. "Well..." She began, "You know when we went to visit the trolls? You know I was asking Bulda something?" Elsa nodded, wondering where this was going, although she had a faintest glimmer of an idea. "Well, I... I asked her if I was, you know... Pregnant."

Elsa smiled triumphantly. "I knew it!" She exclaimed, but then she realised that something was off with her sister. It took her a few seconds, but then it settled in her brain. "Oh, god, Anna..." She said, "You... You... Did you..." She couldn't finish her sentence.

Anna finished it for her, nodding. "Yes, Elsie. I lost the baby." She hung her head, and the Queen drew her younger sister into an embrace, comfortingly.

A few minutes passed by in silence, and then Elsa spoke up. "Does Kristoff know?" She asked, and Anna nodded slowly.

"Yeah. He knew I was pregnant and, you know, pieced things together when he saw me." She replied, sighing.

A few more awkward seconds of silence passed, but then Anna let out a breath. "Still, I can't live in the past, can I? The past is in the past, and there's nothing I can do about it. I need to move on."

Elsa opened her mouth to object, to say it was perfectly natural to be grieving, but Anna held up her hand. "Please, don't, Elsie. It'll make it harder. I just need to get over it. I've had over a week now, it's okay... I think. I mean, it wasn't even a baby, really, I was only two months along..." She sighed. "Besides, Bulda said she thought she sensed something was a little off. I don't think it was strong enough to survive anyway. So, I guess, maybe it was for the best."

Elsa nodded, slowly, uncertainly, but Anna, having decided to get over things, wasn't going to let the mood hang. She turned to her sister, and, trying to forget everything going on, grinned at her.

"So, you and Odd are married now..." She began, and Elsa frowned. Where had that come from? More specifically, what exactly was her sister getting at?

"Yes..." She prompted, and Anna had a cheeky gleam in her bright blue eyes.

"And you obviously share a bed..." She continued, and Elsa's eyes widened, as a blush began to creep up into sight upon her white cheeks.

_Oh, god, Anna._ She thought, _Why do you do this to me?_

Anna noticed her sister's reaction, and this only encouraged her more. "So, have you two spent any... _couple time_ together?" She asked, and Elsa felt like she'd had a tennis ball forced down her throat.

"W-What?" She almost stuttered, shocked and embarrassed, and her blush grew, her normally snow-white cheeks now fire-red. Anna grinned triumphantly, laughing at her sister's awkward glances around the room. She was clearly out of her comfort zone, but the Princess was enjoying tormenting her. Not in a malicious way, but it truly was hilarious.

"I'll take that as a yes. So, is Odd any good in bed?"

Elsa's eyes grew even wider, as she looked around the room for an escape route, and felt like she'd pass out from embarrassment soon.

Anns laughed. "I'm teasing you, Elsa!" She said, cheerfully, but then she stopped laughing. "Besides, I already know the answer."

Elsa's mouth hung open, and she glared at Anna. "You were spying on us!" She whispered harshly, and Anna looked horrified.

"Oh, hell, no. That's just wrong. No, not spying, but believe it or not, even if I can't see you, it doesn't mean my ears have stopped working."

Elsa felt like she was going to die any second. _Can this day get any worse?_

* * *

Hans lay, staring up at the ceiling, as he so often did, thinking. Elsa had been married to Odd for just over a week now, if he was not mistaken. It wasn't long enough to start the main stage of his plan, but he could begin preparations.

Standing up, he called over a guard, and requested that his older brother, Alec, come to see him. Alec was the twelfth born prince, one up from Hans, and out of all of his siblings, was the one who'd associate and help him most.

He grinned as he sat back down, waiting, and saw a small spider scuttling across the floor. He picked it up carefully and, then, with no remorse or consideration for his actions, pulled one of its legs clean off.

The spider twitched as the Prince removed another, and then two more, leaving it with only four of its original eight legs. Gently he placed it back down, watching as it scuttled around wobbly in a circle, its body wracked with convulsions of pain, and small droplets of blood, almost impossible to see, stained the grey stone floor.

Hans watched for a few seconds, then bent down, and crushed the poor creature with his finger, slowly, revelling in the desperate wriggling it made.

_Strike when they're at their weakest_. He thought, savagely, as he picked up the dead bug and placed it in his mouth, crunching down and enjoying the cracking sound it made. _And then they'll simply fall under your control._

* * *

**Yay! This was a bit more of a filler chapter, but I hope you liked it anyway.**

**First things first, quite a few reviews last chapter were saying how I should have made Anna's... what do you call it? Mishap? I don't know... Anyway, how I should have made it clearer, because people didn't understand, but it was meant to be unclear, to get you guys thinking. Hopefully it's cleared up now, anyway.**

**So, has anyone got any ideas what Hans' plan is? If you can leave a review with your guess, and guess an aspect of it correctly, then I'll tell you if it was right or not!**

**Yay!**


	7. Chapter 7 - dedicated to OmegaMarker

_**Hans lay, staring up at the ceiling, as he so often did, thinking. Elsa had been married to Odd for just over a week now, if he was not mistaken. It wasn't long enough to start the main stage of his plan, but he could begin preparations.**_

_**Standing up, he called over a guard, and requested that his older brother, Alec, come to see him. Alec was the twelfth born prince, one up from Hans, and out of all of his siblings, was the one who'd associate and help him most.**_

_**He grinned as he sat back down, waiting, and saw a small spider scuttling across the floor. He picked it up carefully and, then, with no remorse or consideration for his actions, pulled one of its legs clean off.**_

_**The spider twitched as the Prince removed another, and then two more, leaving it with only four of its original eight legs. Gently he placed it back down, watching as it scuttled around wobbly in a circle, its body wracked with convulsions of pain, and small droplets of blood, almost impossible to see, stained the grey stone floor.**_

_**Hans watched for a few seconds, then bent down, and crushed the poor creature with his finger, slowly, revelling in the desperate wriggling it made.**_

_**Strike when they're at their weakest. He thought, savagely, as he picked up the dead bug and placed it in his mouth, crunching down and enjoying the cracking sound it made. And then they'll simply fall under your control.**_

* * *

Odd was sat outside in the castle courtyard, under the only-slightly warm september sun, a small piece of wood clutched in his hand, a scalpel held in the other, as he carefully sliced a few small strips of the bark away. He frowned, and squinted at the work, before he noticed the rough edges, and began to make a few more small changes, carefully editing his work to make it perfect.

He looked up as he heard a small disturbance, and noticed Kristoff and Sven trotting over to him. The mountain man nodded to him, and sat down next to his brother-in-law.

"Hey, mate." He said, and then noticed the little item Odd was crafting. "Oh, what's that?"

Odd looked down at the item in his hands, as he cut off another small sliver from it. The little wooden piece was a small snowflake that the man had crafted, from memory of the ones the Queen managed to create so perfectly. "Oh, it's for Elsa." He commented, "She isn't feeling too good, and I thought it would make her feel a little better."

Kristoff chuckled. "That's sweet," He said, "I'm sure she'll love it."

Odd smiled. "So, how was your day?" He asked, "How'd the ice harvesting go?"

The man shrugged. "Meh, not all that great. I got half way up the mountain and then noticed that Mia had been following me all the way up." Just then, the little child came bouncing over on her reindeer's back. "Speak of the devil." Kristoff commented affectionately, as he rubbed her hair gently.

Mia laughed. "Hiya, Odd!" The child cried out happily.

Odd laughed, as he placed down the wooden snowflake he was making for Elsa. "What were you up to, little Princess?" He said cheekily, as he tickled her under her chin. Though he'd spent most of his life growing up away from people, he'd made that his fate partially because of the love he'd felt for his sister, when he'd run away, and now, he absolutely adored children.

"I was following Papa!" She explained, and Odd smiled, as he patter her shoulder.

"Good girl," He teased, holding back a laugh when he saw Kristoff's face. "You have to keep an eye on Mummy and Daddy for me, okay? Then if they are naughty, we'll get revenge on them." Odd then glanced at his brother-in-law's face, seeing a look of both horror and shock on it, and realised exactly what he'd said.

"Oh, god!" He cried out, "Not that type of naughty!" Kristoff breathed out a sigh of relief, but Mia frowned.

"What type of naughty?" She asked, her voice sweet and innocent.

Odd looked around unsurely, glancing to Kristoff for help, but the man shook his head, laughing at his companion's situation. "Umm..." Odd said, not quite sure what to reply, obviously not wanting to say the truth, but not knowing how to cover it up. "Uhm, well, when Mummy and Daddy are only being a bit naughty, we won't get revenge on them then. But if they're _really really_ naughty, then we will."

Kristoff looked like he was going to choke from trying to hold in his laughter, but Mia looked serious still, oblivious. "If Papa take Wolf?" She suggested, and Odd laughed.

"Okay, Mia." He said, "If Daddy steals Wolf, then we'll get revenge on him."

Mia looked gleefully at her father, with a gleam in her eyes. "Papa taked Wolf!" She cried out, pointing at him accusingly, and Kristoff crossed his arms over his chest.

"No, I didn't!" He said in response, miming horror at being accused. "You lost him!"

Mia laughed, and Odd stood up from his seat.

"I don't know..." He said, grinning, "Do you believe him, Mia?"

The toddler laughed happily. "No! Papa taked Wolf!" She ran over to her father, and grabbed tightly onto his leg, wrapping her arms and legs tightly around him, and no matter how much he shook her, she would not let go.

"Well, then." Odd said, "We'll just have to fix this, then, won't we?" He said, and Mia nodded enthusiastically, laughing. "Come on, then!"

Odd laughed, as he pinned Kristoff down playfully, and the man squirmed, playing along, as his daughter came over and jumped on him.

"Ooph!" Kristoff groaned, as Mia landed right on his stomach, and he scowled at her. "Come here, you!" Standing up, he caught her as she fell, and swung her around, before stopping so that he could tickle her. The toddler wriggled and writhed wildly, screaming happily for help.

Odd chuckled again, as he bent down to pick up his wooden snowflake, and finish it off.

"Well, I'm going to go back inside and see how Elsa's doing. Are you two coming?"

Kristoff nodded and, for a moment, stopped tickling Mia, who took advantage of the second to scramble from her father's grasp and run to her uncle, poking her tongue out at him cheekily as she went.

After a few minutes, the group reached the main entrance hall, and slowly, Odd's gaze trailed over to the portrait of the old king on the wall. He stopped, and sighed.

Kristoff turned around, frowning at him, before he looked at what his 'brother' was looking at and understood.

"Are you a bit nervous, Odd?" He asked, and his companion nodded.

"Yeah." He replied, in affirmation, "I mean, sure, I'm a Prince, now, but who am I really? I don't have any past - not a past that I want to remember, any way - and I'm not exactly Prince material. I don't even have a proper job, because really, that whole '_Forest Master and Protector_' thing is just an excuse."

Kristoff placed his hand on Odd's shoulder. "I know how you feel." He said, as he looked at the towering portrait. "I always worried I'd be no good - I wasn't even raised by people, I was raised by trolls, who have completely different customs. In the end, though, as Anna reminded me, it isn't your lineage which makes you a good member of the royal family."

Odd considered this, but frowned. "Then what?"

Kristoff smiled at him, as he said, "It's who you are inside." He then turned to look at the painting again. "Perhaps you won't be the king, but I promise you, you'll make a bloody brilliant Prince." He paused, thinking, and Mia cried out, "Bwoody Bwilliant Prince!"

Kristoff's face was one of pure shock, as the thought, _"I am so dead,"_ ran through his mind. Odd chuckled, as Mia added, "Like Papa!"

Kristoff's heart melted, and he picked up his daughter, who smiled at him.

"Come on," he said, "Let's go find that Queen of yours."

As the walked off, he said quietly to Mia, "Do you know what 'bloody' means, Baby?"

The girl shook her head, and Kristoff continued, "It means poo."

Mia scrunched up her nose, as she cried out, "Ewww!", loudly enough for almost all of the castle to hear.

* * *

Elsa groaned as she sat up, and Anna rubbed the back of her neck.

"You feeling better?" She said, gently, and the Queen nodded, before hastily shaking her head again and almost diving for the chamber pot. She groaned again, as she rinsed her mouth out.

"Ugh!" She complained, "This is hell!"

Anna laughed. "Hey, hey, it's not so bad. Remember what I was like when I was pregnant with Mia?"

Elsa couldn't help but laugh quietly. "Oh, thank God I'm not pregnant." She commented, as she wiped her mouth on a handkerchief. "I think I'll just say I can't have children and adopt, instead."

Anna laughed. "Whatever you want, Elsa." She said, as she studied her sister's face. "You know, you've got more colour in your cheeks... well, a little bit. Your skin isn't completely white at any rate. And it doesn't have that green tint."

Elsa smiled, as she commented, "That's the downside of my being the snow-Queen, huh?" She turned to look in the mirror. "It looks like I've just, I don't know, painted my face with chalk, doesn't it?"

Anna giggled. "Well, your hair's whiter." She pointed out, but Elsa frowned as she turned to leave the bathroom.

"My hair isn't _white_, Anna." She said, rolling her eyes, "It's just very bleach-blonde."

The Princess raised her eyebrows, as she said, "Uh-huh?", unconvinced, and Elsa waved her hand dismissively.

"Fine, think what you want." She replied, and Anna grinned triumphantly as she sat down on Elsa and Odd's king sized bed.

Just then, there came a little knock at the door, and Olaf came trotting in, grinning like crazy, as normal. "Hi, Anna! Hey, Elsa!" He greeted, and he smiled at the Queen. "Kristoff and Odd are waiting for you two downstairs, so I came to get you."

Anna and Elsa looked at each other, before shrugging and following Olaf out of the room. Though the Queen still looked a little under the weather, she was quite presentable, as she made herself a dress of ice quickly.

Olaf laughed as he skipped through the corridors, before he turned his head around to look at the Queen.

'"You know, Elsa," He said, "Your hair looks especially white today. Like snow!"

* * *

"Hello, Alec..." Hans sneered, "Long time, no see. How's life up above?"

The older Prince frowned, as he crossed his arms and stood up taller, threateningly, but the younger was not put off in the slightest.

"What do you want, Hans?" Alec snapped, as he impatiently tapped his foot on the ground, his eyes narrowed at his younger brother in disdain.

Hans chuckled quietly at his sibling's behaviour, as he stood up and glided over to the cell bars. "Don't look like that, Alec," He said, his voice sharp as knives. "Maybe we don't agree on everything. I understand that you do not agree with my actions in Arendelle, four years ago, whereas I still feel that I did nothing wrong. Well... perhaps I was a little harsh on the Queen, but that's in the past, now."

Alec stared at Hans, his face expressionless. "What are you trying to get at here, _brother_?" He snapped.

Hans chuckled again. "Now now, brother. Don't jump to conclusions... just let me talk first, before the guards take you away."

"Spit it out, then."

The younger Prince sat back down again, as he stared at his brother directly in the eyes, but neither would back down, both struggling without saying anything for authority, power, over the other. "I'm not blind, Alec, even if I am trapped down here. I know that Bjørn always was your favourite older brother, and his death still makes you angry."

Alec seemed un-impressed, as Hans continued. "I also know that our Kingdom is... aching... for a war. And those cravings must be quenched, yes?"

Alec frowned. "Are you suggesting that we go to war with Arendelle? I believe you are forgetting that she has one of the largest, strongest navy fleets in the world? We'd never get to the docks, even."

Hans clucked his tongue, mockingly. "You seem to underestimate my intelligence, brother. It is insulting, even. No, I am not suggesting that we go to war with Arendelle, for she is, as you say, much too well-defended for us. However, from what I know, are the Queen and Princess of Arendelle not related to the Queen of Corona?"

Something seemed to click in Alec's mind. "Are you saying that if we go to war with Corona, Arendelle will join?"

Hans clapped his hands together, grinning. "That's exactly what I'm saying brother, but that's not all."

Alec seemed suddenly interested in his sibling's plans, as he took a step closer to the bars of the cell, eager to hear the rest of the scheme. Hans was amused at his brother's rapid involvement in his plot. "That would satisfy our need of war, but what about the need of revenge?" Hans was in his element by now. "And I know exactly the way to get it."

* * *

**Okay, another short chapter, but do not fear! As things begin to liven up, the chapters will get longer, but at the moment, it is a little difficult to come up with things to write about. If there's anything you want me to write about, please, leave a request. It'll make it easier for me to write the chapters!**

**Anyway, PLEASE review! They make me happy and warm inside!**


	8. Chapter 8 - dedicated to KLime (guest)

_**Hans clucked his tongue, mockingly. "You seem to underestimate my intelligence, brother. It is insulting, even. No, I am not suggesting that we go to war with Arendelle, for she is, as you say, much too well-defended for us. However, from what I know, are the Queen and Princess of Arendelle not related to the Queen of Corona?"**_

_**Something seemed to click in Alec's mind. "Are you saying that if we go to war with Corona, Arendelle will join?"**_

_**Hans clapped his hands together, grinning. "That's exactly what I'm saying brother, but that's not all."**_

_**Alec seemed suddenly interested in his sibling's plans, as he took a step closer to the bars of the cell, eager to hear the rest of the scheme. Hans was amused at his brother's rapid involvement in his plot. "That would satisfy our need of war, but what about the need of revenge?" Hans was in his element by now. "And I know exactly the way to get it."**_

* * *

Odd rubbed Elsa's back gently, holding her silver-blonde hair back, as she threw up once again into the chamber pot, moaning. She'd almost been living in the bathroom for the past three days, vomiting almost all day-and-night. To his credit, Odd had remained faithfully with her, despite her dishevelled appearance, and even worse, the gag-worthy smell. During one of her 'free periods' - when she wasn't being sick - Elsa had actually commented how un-Queenly it all was, and her companion had actually agreed, teasing her, but it made her laugh, and she was grateful.

Well, at least until that triggered another spell of vomiting.

People had been in and out of the room during the whole time, whether it be Anna, maids bringing food and drink to Elsa and Odd, although the Queen could only stomach water and was, as a result, getting very hungry and quite cranky, an emotion that she rarely ever showed. Still, though, she didn't want to try eating again, because her nausea seemed to finally be clearing up, and she didn't want to risk another wave of it.

She sighed, as she felt her stomach clench up again and she retched, but nothing came up, and she groaned as it happened a few more times, before eventually ceasing.

"Ugh..." She moaned, and Odd patted her back gently.

"How are you feeling now?" He asked gently, and Elsa shrugged slightly, weak and shaky from the retching.

"I think I'm a bit better now." She laughed nervously. "I don't think there's actually anything left in my stomach for me to be sick."

Odd smiled, as he helped her stand up, but he noticed how shaky she was, and he bent down to pick her up, bridal style. "Come on," He whispered. "I'll get you to the bed, and then you need to try and eat something. Else you'll starve, and we don't want that."

Elsa laughed quietly, as she was carried to the bed and gently laid down. "You sound like you're talking to a child."

Odd chuckled, as he moved a lock of sweaty hair from Elsa's face and smiled. "Sorry," He apologised, before placing a kiss on his fingers, and touching her forehead. "I'll be back in a bit, would you like me to get Anna?"

Elsa smiled. "That'd be wonderful. Thanks, Odd. I'd kiss you, but quite frankly, I don't want to give you this bug."

Odd chuckled, as he stood up. "I've probably caught it already by now." He said, his voice teasing. "I'll be expecting you to care for _me_ then!"

Elsa laughed, a proper, stronger, hearty laugh. "It's your own fault." She teased, not feeling sick at all any more. "But if that's the case, I'll see what I can do."

"Thanks, Snowy." Odd teased, and Elsa raised her eyebrows in surprise.

"Snowy!" She snapped, but her voice was not harsh, but gentle, surprised sense. Odd chuckled as he walked through the doorway.

He shrugged in amusement. "What? It suits you." He teased, and grinned at her. "I'll go find Anna. I think she wants to talk with you, anyway."

* * *

Mia laughed as she danced around happily, spinning, her long, elbow length bleach blonde hair twirling around her as she went. She giggled happily as she skipped around her friend, Arne, cheekily grabbing his hand and pulling him around in a circle.

The pair laughed together, their young, high-pitched voices ringing through the still air. Eventually, they got bored of dancing around, and Arne found a small bag of marbles in his pocket, which he brought out for the pair to play with.

Arne was a young boy, a poor, disabled orphan, who would show up sometimes, randomly, to play with the little Princess. He was older than Mia at the age of three and a half. The princess was very advanced for her age, however, and as such, the boy had no problems with playing with her. She didn't act like a baby, and that was enough for him.

At any rate, no one else would ever play with him, so the little Princess was the only person he could trust to keep him company, and not judge him instantly. Most people looked at him with disdain, no one taking the time to get to know him like Mia did.

Mia rolled her marble, and cheered as it hit the striker, making Arne scowl, before he noticed the larger ball rolling away. Quickly, he scrambled up after it clumsily, not wanting to lose his precious marble, and Mia cried out, making adults come rushing outside.

"No, Arne!" She shouted, "Stay 'way from edge!"

Arne, however, didn't notice the Princess' warning, as he hurriedly scurried after the little ball, which dropped off the edge of the cobbled floor and fell down to the village below, smashing from the impact. The boy pounded his fist angrily on the ground, and he began to try to climb awkwardly down, making the adults surrounding him stare in a mixture of awe and concern. Even though many did not actually see Arne as a human being, for he was so different to them, the way that he managed to manoeuvre the face was truly amazing, all things considered.

Mia yelled for him to stop again, crying out, "Stop, Arne! Stop! You get hurt!" But nothing could deter the young boy from his mission. Mia ran over to him, and in her fear, she didn't notice that the floor was becoming increasingly slippery, as a small layer of ice formed around her feet.

Arne noticed a second too late that there was ice on the ledge, and slipped as his foot made contact with it, falling down a metre or so to a dirt outcrop below, crying out at the impact and the shock, not really hurt, but stunned.

"Arne!" Mia cried out, as she lay down on the slippery floor, trying to reach him, but her short, stubby arms were not up for the job, and she could not help. More ice began to form, and then, suddenly, the ledge Arne was sat on gave way. The princess cried out in fear for her friend, and large icicles sprung up behind her, almost hitting the surrounding villagers, but luckily not quite.

Mia didn't notice the scared looks the adults surrounding her were sending - she was only a year and a half old, and there was no way she could control her powers. Not completely, anyway, and even though she was so advanced, she was still only one and a half. They had no problem with Queen Elsa, but she was not dangerous. The young princess could be, quite possibly.

She spun around to the adults, who all instantly backed up a step, and she cried, "Someone, 'elp Arne!" But no one reacted, all too dazed to process the girl's request. No one really cared for the child, either - no one knew where he came from, and a large majority of people assumed that he would bring bad fortune along with him. Perhaps part of this distrust towards the child stemmed from his physical appearance - the poor boy only had a stump, in the place where his right arm should have been, and people did not have confidence in people with such handicaps. She begged again, but still, no one would help, all seemingly frozen in place, but they couldn't get past the icicles anyway.

Mia began to sob, and then, suddenly, she stopped, and, with a dazed expression on her face, she turned to the adults again and waved her hand. A few small snowflakes emerged from her fingertips, and gently floated over to one of the villagers, before settling upon the man's nose, and disappearing.

For a few seconds, he appeared normal, but then his body shook, before returning to normal, and slowly, he began to make his way over to the edge where Arne had fallen, breaking the ice away with his hands, not reacting at all when he slipped on the slippery floor beneath him.

It wasn't long before the man reached Arne, and slowly, he helped to pull the child back up to the village, before placing him down, and then walking back over to the crowd.

For a second, everything was silent, and then suddenly, the man collapsed in a faint, out cold on the cobblestone floor. It was a few moments before anyone spoke up.

"It was the princess!" A boy, nearing the age of his teenage years, but not quite there yet, shouted. Mia glanced at him, confused at why she was being accused, and she instantly recognised him.

She glared at him, her blue eyes icy cold, and he stared back at her with just as much disdain. Their paths had crossed before, when Mia had been riding Lysse, and had knocked over the boy's carefully crafted stone sculpture of the Arendellian symbol. Though the little princess had apologised a lot - she had inherited some of her mother's clumsiness, it appeared - the boy refused to believe that she had not hit it on purpose. Ever since, he'd made it his goal to try and get revenge on her, but it wasn't easy to hurt a Princess without getting a prison cell with one's name on it.

The boy grinned coldly, and Mia shrunk back a bit, staring around at the frightened villagers around her.

"She hypnotised him. Don't you see! She's dangerous! She's too young to control the curses she has! We must stay away from her!"

Arne, slowly getting up, in pain from his fall, glared at the boy. "She's not dangerous!" He cried out, but instead of being intimidating, it was actually almost amusing, the toddler arguing with the teenager.

"She is!" The boy snapped back, and he turned to his fellow villagers. "She can't even talk properly yet! There's no way she could control herself! She'll hurt someone, and she can _hypnotise_ people! She'll make someone... walk off a cliff! Like she just did!"

Though the villagers had confidence that Mia was a sweet child, they all seemed to accept that the boy had a point. A few had begun to retreat away from the girl in fear, while others were staring suspiciously at her, untrusting.

A disturbance came at the back of the crowd, and Anna pushed through, glancing worriedly at her daughter. She didn't mind her playing with Arne, because she always hated the idea of the child being alone - she'd had enough of that as a girl herself. However, she was a little concerned about the massive crowd.

"What's going on here?" She asked, as she walked over to Mia and picked her up, smiling gently at her. "Come on, Sweetie. It's lunchtime. Do you want to bring Arne?"

Mia shook her head, her long, straight blonde hair flying gently in the wind. "Arne no like castle." She said, before explaining. "Too much. Too big, many walls."

Anna frowned a little, but nodded anyway, accepting it. She looked around the crowd, and smiled. "I don't know what's going on here, but... well, bye!"

She tried to leave, but the teenager stepped in front of her, and glared coldly.

"Your daughter is a brat!" He shouted, unable to stop himself, controlled by the desire to put Mia down in front of her mother. "She's dangerous!"

Anna gasped, as she looked down at her baby daughter worriedly. "W-what do you mean?" She asked, her eyes shining. The boy laughed.

"You know exactly what I mean, _Princess_." He said, all reasonable thoughts lost in his anger. "She has ice powers, and she can't control them. She nearly stabbed someone!"

Anna looked terrified, as she tightened her grip on her daughter protectively. "No, no! She... she nearly can! She's just learning to master it."

The boy didn't look impressed. "If you say so, Princess. But that's not all, is it? That's not all you've been hiding from us!"

Anna looked confused, now. "N-no, she doesn't." She stuttered, scared by the terrified looks many of the villagers were sending her.

"Yes, she does, Princess." The boy snapped back. "Never seen her hypnotise someone before?"

Anna had to hold back a gasp. "N-no! She can't! She just makes snow!"

"Believe what you want, but mark my words - she's going to get someone killed."

Anna felt her legs go weak, and she struggled not to collapse. There came a disturbance from behind, and Elsa quickly came forward to help her sister, grabbing her shoulder to support her.

The Queen turned to her guards, and said simply, "Take this boy to one of the free prison cells. Hopefully a week of confinement there will teach him some self-discipline and to hold his tongue." She then turned to the villagers. "There is nothing to see here. Please, be on your way."

Carefully, gently, she helped support Anna as she walked back up to the castle, by which time Arne had disappeared. The Princess stopped when she got inside the doors, and quickly placed Mia down, before she collapsed onto the floor herself.

"Now, everyone knows." She muttered, before looking at her sister. "What can we do? If what that boy said is true - if Mia really can control people - then the word will soon spread."

Elsa looked at her niece fearfully. "We can't let her out of our sight. She isn't safe anywhere now. One way or another, someone will try to hurt her, out of fear or greed."

Anna looked at the new portrait of the Queen and her Prince, and sighed. "We can't ever let her out, really, can we?" She asked, sadly. Elsa shook her head, not know how to soften the news for her sister.

"It's true - we can't let her out. Perhaps not indefinitely, but she'll have to remain here, in the castle, for the most part. If we don't... I can't imagine what will happen."

Anna felt tears leak from her eyes. "Oh, Elsa. I feel terrible! How can I keep her locked up forever? She'll hate me!"

Elsa sighed. "I know, Anna. We'll try to work things out, but... for now, though it pains me, we really have no choice. She could get hurt. You saw how that boy reacted to her, didn't you? People don't trust magic very much, even my own - in a young child, they'll never see her for anything but a monster."

Lunch was forgotten, as Elsa helped Anna and Mia to the lounge, where the Princess lay crying all evening at how messed up everything was, whilst the young girl entertained herself with gentle snowflakes, a constant reminder of the trouble they were all in.

* * *

**Ooooh! I didn't get many reviews last chapter - I might cry! Please review! It makes my day and encourages me to keep writing - without them, I'd lose all inspiration!**

**So, what did you think of the chapter? What about Mia's new power? (I did say she'd be powerful, didn't I?)**

**Also, things are starting to heat up now! If you have any chapter requests, get them in now, while they can still be fitted in!**


	9. Chapter 9 - dedicated to FrozenGirl123

_**"It's true - we can't let her out. Perhaps not indefinitely, but she'll have to remain here, in the castle, for the most part. If we don't... I can't imagine what will happen."**_

_**Anna felt tears leak from her eyes. "Oh, Elsa. I feel terrible! How can I keep her locked up forever? She'll hate me!"**_

_**Elsa sighed. "I know, Anna. We'll try to work things out, but... for now, though it pains me, we really have no choice. She could get hurt. You saw how that boy reacted to her, didn't you? People don't trust magic very much, even my own - in a young child, they'll never see her for anything but a monster."**_

_**Lunch was forgotten, as Elsa helped Anna and Mia to the lounge, where the Princess lay crying all evening at how messed up everything was, whilst the young girl entertained herself with gentle snowflakes, a constant reminder of the trouble they were all in.**_

* * *

Mia sighed sadly as she sat in the castle courtyard, watching Seier and Sven playing together. It was sweet, the large wolf pouncing at his reindeer companion, while the said hoofed animal sprung around out of the way and tried to pick the canine up with his antlers. In truth, both could easily get hurt, whether it be bitten, in Sven's case, or stood on, in Seier's, but either way, the two were happy for now.

Lysse was laying down next to Mia, just as bored. She always knew when 'her girl' was upset, and would never leave her side during such times, as was the case now. The young princess, just turned 23 months, lay down, staring up at the sky above her. It was a bright, sunny day, although it was November now, and the air was crisp and cool. Still, the girl didn't mind - similarly to her aunt Elsa, the cold never bothered her.

After a while, three minutes and thirteen seconds to be exact, Mia got bored of watching the gentle, white clouds floating along silently, and she even began to resent them. They were all little sheep in her eyes, wandering aimlessly with no real goals or intentions. They simply did the same thing every day, confined to the exact same routine when they could so easily rebel, break free. She couldn't quite grasp the concept that they were not alive, and it almost made her angry that they never did anything different, when they had so much freedom, and yet here she was, longing to be able to just do something - anything - but not being able to.

Trapped in the castle, bored, for two months, now.

She was a bright child, and knew she shouldn't be feeling so bitter. She knew her aunt's past, knew how she had grown up due to her powers, constantly hidden away in her room. At least she was able to roam free, almost. She was glad she was allowed to wander around the castle, and play out in the courtyard. She was even allowed to go with her father ice harvesting some days, simply as an excuse to let her get out of the castle, and at other times, she'd go exploring the forest with her uncle, Odd.

Still, it wasn't enough. She was hardly confined, but she wished she could go outside into the villages again, like she used to. Occasionally Arne would come up to play with her in the courtyard, but he had never liked the castle much - it scared him, although Mia wasn't quite sure why. She assumed that he just didn't like all of the grandeur, but still, it made her sad that she couldn't go and find him, so that they could spend some time together as they always had before.

Standing up, she walked slowly over to where five wooden stakes, arranged in the shape of a cross, were hammered into the ground, and she picked up a horseshoe gently. Focusing on the middle stake, she squinted her eyes before throwing the curved metal, and she huffed when she missed her goal. Bending down again, she picked up another, and this time, aimed for the one closest to her, figuring she might as well start small, and then get better.

With only the smallest amount of enthusiasm, Mia smiled as the horseshoe met the stake and fell around it, but it did little to improve her mood - it was no fun when there was no one to play with.

She sighed. "C'mon, 'Ysse." She said, as she stroked her reindeer's soft head, where tiny antlers were beginning to grow. "Let's go practise riding."

The reindeer bleated, as she bent down to let Mia on her back, before taking off at a bouncy canter towards the schooling ring. In the two months she'd been isolated, the Princess had improved at riding greatly, spending much of her time in the arena practising, for she simply had nothing else to do.

* * *

Anna sighed as she looked out of the window, watching her daughter riding the reindeer around the schooling ring.

"I feel so bad, Kristoff," She said, as she watched the young Princess slip backwards off of Lysse's back as she tried to jump a small pole on the floor. Anna cringed slightly, but she knew her daughter was fine - over the past two months, she'd grown used to seeing the child ending up on the ground, and luckily, the reindeer calf was still small, so there wasn't much distance for Mia to fall. "I wish we could let her out into the village again. She's so bored, being here all the time."

Kristoff sighed as well, as he walked over to Anna and wrapped his arm around her waist. "I know," He said, "But what can we do? You know how scared people were of her before, and they won't trust her if they see her. It's obvious she's more powerful - or at least, will be - than Elsa, so people will be afraid that she'll end up, well, setting off another winter."

Anna nodded. "I know, I know," She muttered, "People will be afraid until she can completely control her powers, but being cooped up won't help her."

"Being scared of people's reactions won't, either, Anna." Kristoff pointed out, and he pulled his wife in closer as she began to sob quietly.

"I guess..." She whispered, and her eyes drifted to the girl outside once again. "I just hope she can learn to control it soon. She's doing well, but she's only two. How can anyone expect her to learn something as complicated as this at her age?"

Kristoff was silent for a moment. "I don't know, Anna. I really don't know."

* * *

The sun was beginning to set as Odd returned from patrolling the forests for any sign of trouble. He'd set out late in the afternoon, and by now, it was beginning to get even colder than it had been before.

He was worried about Storm Chaser, now that it was getting colder, worried that if he was on his own, he'd freeze to death. However, the horse was a valuable stud stallion, and if he hadn't escaped on his own, he was probably still okay.

Probably.

Despite numerous searches, Odd had never been able to find his horse, who had been his only companion for thirteen years. It made him sad, but by now, he'd lost any hope of ever finding him again.

The horse wasn't the only thing that was going missing, though. Over the last month, there had been reports of at least 8 people from the villages going missing, and it was beginning to get worrying. Some people were blaming Mia for forcing them away, but most, luckily, didn't believe that.

Either way, though, they were still going missing, and it was worrying. Although in general people were still okay, it wouldn't be too long before they began to get scared and hid away, and then, just like that, poof! The kingdom of Arendelle would end up falling, and that was a terrifying concept indeed.

Odd sighed as he glanced out towards the horizon, looking over at the sea between the little houses of the villagers, the new horse Elsa had given him allowing him a greater elevation. His new stallion, Brandy Shot, wasn't Storm Chaser, but he really was a lovely horse, in the prime of life. As a result, he could see things from higher up, and as such, he could also see more.

Squinting, he noticed a little black blob on the horizon, and after a few minutes, he could make out the distinctive shape of a ship. Gasping, he quickly turned his mount around, and rushed back to the castle, to tell Elsa of the new vessel coming ever closer.

* * *

Mia was sat in her room, playing fetch with Seier, when she noticed the ship landing at the docks, and she squealed in excitement when she saw the flag that was fluttering about gently in the wind. Jumping off of her little desk, which she had been using to sit on so that she could see, she ran quickly to her parents' room, where she found the two tangled up in sheets, looking as if they were enjoying themselves.

"Mama? Papa?" She asked, confused, and her parents quickly jumped apart, blushing furiously. "What are 'oo doing?"

Anna stuttered for a moment, while Kristoff looked as if he had just been told that Sven was now dancing the makarena. Sven hated dancing. He had too many left hooves. Not to mention his antlers always seemed to get in the way when he was trying - he always ended tangled up.

After a few seconds of silence, Anna recovered the use of her brain, as she said, "I'm just giving Papa a special cuddle,". Mia frowned, then she smiled.

"I have special cuddle too?" She asked, and Anna shook her head.

"No, Sweetie, because then I'd have to tickle you." She said, making things up as she went, "Papa likes me tickling him," Kristoff chuckled to himself at this, "But you don't like it when I tickle you, do you?"

Mia shook her head. "No! Too tickly!" She cried out, before remembering what she had come to say. "Oh!" She exclaimed, "I saw big boat! With 'Punzel's flag! Outside!"

It took the two adults a few seconds to process the information, but then Anna gasped, and quickly got out of the bed, rushing to the door. Mia frowned.

"Mama." She said, "You not wear clothes."

Anna looked down at herself and blushed. "Oops." She muttered, while Kristoff just laughed at her as he got up himself, pulling on his uniform - something he'd grown much less annoyed at - and picking Mia up. Once the older Princess had retrieved her dress from its discarded position on the floor, and had done up her corset, they were ready to go.

* * *

Anna smiled, as she waved excitedly to the pair who were now descending down from the ship. Her hair was thrown up in a quick ponytail, not in her usual braided pigtails, and she was wearing her old dress from Elsa's winter.

Rapunzel grinned widely, as she ran down to greet her cousin, engulfing her in a massive, almost sisterly hug, while Mia cuddled her leg gently, and Eugene walked over to greet Kristoff, slapping his back in a 'man hug' by way of greeting.

"Rapunzel!" Anna cried out when the pair broke apart. "This is a surprise! What are you doing here?"

Rapunzel giggled happily, and Eugene put his hands on his hips, shaking his head in amusement, rolling his eyes at Kristoff at their wives' actions. "Me and Eugene were just on the way to one of Corona's alliances, for some boring meeting, and the weather's been favourable. We're a couple of days ahead of schedule, so we took a slight detour to come and visit!"

Anna looked absolutely thrilled. "That's brilliant!" She said, happily, as she took her cousin's hand and dragged her towards the castle, but stopped when Rapunzel said, "Woah, woah, woah!" Anna paused, and looked down at the Blonde-haired Princess' leg, where her daughter was still clinging on tightly.

Rapunzel giggled when she saw the little girl. "Hello, there!" She cried out, "What are you up to, little miss?" Bending down, she picked the child up and swung her around, laughing gleefully as the girl giggled in her high-pitched voice. "So, let me guess... You're Mia, right?"

The young princess nodded happily, her tiara almost slipping off of her head as she did so. Having the opportunity to get out of the castle meant she was extra excited, more so than usual.

"My, you've grown!" Rapunzel commented, as she gently placed her cousin's daughter back down. Patting her head gently, she smiled at Anna, and added, "She looks like you, y'know. Except for her hair... That's because of her powers, yes?"

Anna nodded, as she bent down to pick her toddler up. "Yeah," She replied, "It's been getting blonder and blonder every day, I swear. Not to mention it's really long... are you sure you haven't given her your hair by mistake?"

Rapunzel laughed, as she began to walk back with Anna to the castle. Kristoff and Eugene laughed, before they both shrieked in surprise as Maximus came galloping, bowling them over like skittles. He whinnied in amusement, before trotting bouncily after the three princesses, his tail and head held high, looking rather comical as he lifted his knees as high as he could.

Anna, Rapunzel and Mia reached the castle first, close followed by Maximus, Eugene and Kristoff, who ended up landing in a pile of hay, thanks to a well aimed buck from the stunning white stallion. Standing up and glaring at the horse, they brushed themselves off as they made their way into the grand building, all sighing at its warmth, only noticed that they had been cold when they were warm.

Anna opened her mouth to speak, when the doors burst open, and Odd stood there, gasping for breath, after having clearly run a long distance, very quickly.

"Anna! Kristoff!" He cried out, then he noticed the two new guests, and nodded briefly at them. "Princess Rapunzel. Prince Eugene."

Turning back to the Princess, he ran his hands through his hair, as he said quickly, "Where's Elsa?" Anna shrugged.

"I don't know, why?" She asked, and Odd looked even more worried.

"There's a ship, it's approaching Arendelle, quickly." He replied, and Anna giggled in amusement.

"That's just Rapunzel and Eugene's ship!" She said, but Odd shook his head.

His bright green eyes were dark, and had lost their usual sparkle, replaced by a glint of anger. "No, it's not their ship. There's another one... a much larger one... about a hundred and fifty metres from Arendelle. It's coming up from the South, not the east."

Anna frowned for a moment, before her eyes widened. "The South...?" She asked, and Kristoff's eyes hardened.

"The Southern Isles." He bit out, and no one would deny his prediction. No one could believe it to be false.

* * *

"Everything's going perfectly, Alec." Hans said, as he ran the blade of his knife down the wall, making a sharp scratching noise. At the request of his brother, the 'traitor' of the Southern Isles had been moved to a cell in the castle, so that he could be "kept an eye on", and "given the chance to redeem himself".

"Hans," Alec began, "Don't you think we ought to... you know, make more of an impact?"

Hans chuckled darkly. "Here's the thing, Brother." He said, "You do not understand these things, whereas I do. Trust me - we need to pace ourselves. We get them on their toes, and they'll be clumsy, disorientated. Put a little fear in their hearts, and it'll soon spread to their brains, and when it does, then we know that we've succeeded. You can't rush these things. Get to know your prey a bit, before you try to destroy it."

His eyes glinted maliciously. "You never know what tricks they'll pull otherwise."

* * *

**Dun dun dun! So, what did you think of this chapter? It's a bit longer than the past few, so hopefully you'll like it!**

**Reviews are getting better, but there are still less than usual - please, please review! I work hard to fit in writing these chapters with school, homework and revision, and it makes me feel good to get something back for my time.**

**(Sorry if that sounds a bit like I'm nagging you, but I really need reviews or I wont be able to keep writing. Frozen Powers has become part of my life now - I'd hate for it to end just because I didn't know if my story was good enough or not.)  
**

**Signing out for now, I hope to see you (and your review! teehee) soon! **

**- Sophisticated Grace**


	10. Chapter 10 - dedicated to Lany19

_**"Everything's going perfectly, Alec." Hans said, as he ran the blade of his knife down the wall, making a sharp scratching noise. At the request of his brother, the 'traitor' of the Southern Isles had been moved to a cell in the castle, so that he could be "kept an eye on", and "given the chance to redeem himself".**_

_**"Hans," Alec began, "Don't you think we ought to... you know, make more of an impact?"**_

_**Hans chuckled darkly. "Here's the thing, Brother." He said, "You do not understand these things, whereas I do. Trust me - we need to pace ourselves. We get them on their toes, and they'll be clumsy, disorientated. Put a little fear in their hearts, and it'll soon spread to their brains, and when it does, then we know that we've succeeded. You can't rush these things. Get to know your prey a bit, before you try to destroy it."**_

_**His eyes glinted maliciously. "You never know what tricks they'll pull otherwise."**_

* * *

Anna gasped quietly, as she looked towards where Odd was pointing, and saw the approaching ship moving at an incredible, impossible speed towards the kingdom. With large, wide blue eyes, she turned to Kristoff and Eugene and shouted, "Go and find Elsa!". She then picked up Mia, and looked over to her cousin and Odd, who were looking just as frightened as she was.

"Come on!" She cried, as the wind began to howl in her ears. "We need to get all of the villagers up here to the castle! If there's an attack, it's the only place they'll be safe. At least for a while."

Rapunzel and Odd nodded determinedly, and Anna placed Mia gently back down. The child looked absolutely terrified.

"Mama?" She asked, her voice shaking. "What going on?"

Anna tried to look confident, for her daughter's sake, as well as her own. "Bad people are coming, Sweetie. They might try to hurt you. You have to get inside and stay hidden, okay?"

Mia looked unsure, but she did as she was told anyway, running off on her chubby little legs, a little unsteady from fear. Anna could only pray she'd be okay.

"Come on!" She cried out, as the wind suddenly picked up, and she stumbled slightly from the unexpected force. "Let's get to the stables, then we can travel quicker!"

Anna's companions nodded, and hurriedly, they raced to the boxes, where they found Heidi, Odd's younger sister, mucking out one of the stalls.

"Princesses! Odd!" She cried out, and hurriedly curtsied, but then she noticed the grim expressions on their faces. "Whatever is the matter?" The teenaged girl asked.

"There's an enemy boat approaching from the South," Anna explained in a rush, her voice high-pitched from the fear that was brewing, bubbling in her stomach. "We need to get all of the villagers up to the castle."

Heidi looked worried. "Is there anything I can do to help?" She asked, and Anna frowned. There wasn't much a servant girl could do in a situation like this, but then a thought occurred to the Princess.

"Actually, yes, you can!" She said, "Could you go to the leader of the navy and tell him to get all of the boats out, as soon as possible. We've got ten minutes, if that, so we need to act fast! Also, tell someone to ring the bells - we need the villagers outside."

Heidi nodded, and rushed off, and the three royals went to their horses, Odd grabbing Brandy Shot, Anna fetching Misty, and Rapunzel whistled for Maximus. Without bothering to get any tack on the horses, the group jumped quickly onto the animals' backs and headed out of the stables, out into the massive castle courtyard, at a fast gallop.

"Anna!" Odd called out over the thundering hooves, "We need to split up! Arendelle's a big kingdom; we may not have enough time to save everyone, but if we can go separate ways then we'll cover more ground!"

Anna nodded, and shouted back, "Get anyone with a horse to help!" Rapunzel and Odd nodded, before turning their horses sharply and heading off in a separate directions, trying to save whoever they could.

* * *

Kristoff rushed around, crossing paths with Eugene multiple times, but their searches were fruitless - even with the help of all of the servants, the Queen was no where to be found.

"She's not here!" Kristoff called to Eugene, "We need to find her - she can stop the ship, but I don't know where she could be!"

"I-" Eugene began, but Kristoff cut him off as he looked out of the window.

"Shit!" He yelled, as he began to run to the stables to grab Sven, terrified as his two year old daughter ran across a newly-frozen fjord to reach the land on the other side, sat on the back of her little reindeer calf. "What is she doing!"

Eugene frowned, his eyes wide with worry; Mia was almost like a niece to him. "You go and get her, I'll keep looking for Elsa."

Kristoff nodded, and ran out of the hall.

* * *

Mia squinted her eyes as the wind howled around her, the blonde hair on her head swirling like snow around her face, making it hard to see, and the child had to trust her reindeer friend to go in the right direction.

She didn't completely understand what was going on - it was all so confusing - but she had managed to pick up on the fact that there was someone bad coming to hurt everyone, and that the only person who could stop them was her Auntie Elsa. Naturally, she was always a curious child, and she'd been more than willing to help search for the Queen, but from her low vantage point, Mia had been able to pick up on something everyone else had missed: a very fine layer of ice trailing across the ground.

Though it was cold, the young Princess knew that it was not cool enough for natural ice to form. Studying the trail with her large, inquisitive eyes, she had noticed something was a little off, but it was a few seconds before she realised the soft snowflake pattern that was gently engraved in the faint, light blue substance.

When she'd seen the ice the first time, she'd figured, there wasn't time to find her father, and had set off in search of her aunt herself, deciding that it would be more beneficial for her to follow the Queen's trail. It had not occurred to her once that Sven, being much older and bigger than Lysse, would have been able to make up the time spent searching for Kristoff by running faster, but the child was just two years old. Understandably, she hadn't yet picked up the skill of quick analysis of a situation, even less so a potentially dangerous one, where her decision could affect the safety of others.

Mia glanced around as she smoothed the long, blonde hair from her face, looking desperately for her aunt. She didn't know how to count above ten, and there was no way of her knowing how much longer it would be until the ship arrived at Arendelle.

One thing she did know, was that however much time was left, there wasn't much time spare.

_I must have gone for least five minutes now, _She thought to herself, as she paused at the edge of the mountain and looked down at the sea. She was always able to think in near-perfect english, but her voice box simply wasn't developed enough to allow her to speak properly. _And ship is nearly at Arendelle..._

"Go, 'Ysse!" The child called out, as she clucked her tongue and kicked the reindeer into a fast gallop, which she had perfected over the last month, trapped in the castle with little else to do.

Lysse's cloven hooves pounded across the solid ground, as she bleated tiredly and Mia patted her neck encouragingly. The reindeer whined slightly, but kept going, rushing forward with a final burst energy at a speed she'd never before managed to reach.

"There!" Mia yelled, pointing. "There it is, 'Ysse!"

And indeed, in front of her, in the direction she was pointing, the magnificent palace of ice stood tall, shining lavishly in the fading sunlight, brilliant shades of red and orange.

"Stay here." Mia said, patting her friend's head as she sat down in he thin layer of snow, that covered the top of the mountain all year around. "I be back soon."

The young princess looked on in awe at the massive ice sculpture, as she rushed up the ice staircase, no regard for the fact that she could easily fall and hurt herself. She'd heard stories about the place, seen painting of it, and had looked at it from a distance, even. Nothing could actually capture the real magic of it like being up-close could.

"Auntie?" Mia called out, as she knocked gently on the ice doors, which swung open, and the girl rushed inside. "Auntie Elsa?" She repeated, louder this time, when she heard a low growl off to her side.

Spinning to look in the direction the noise was coming from, Mia let out a scream when she saw a massive snowman, or rather, snow monster, looming over her, ice growing from his back. Clearly he was angry.

The young Princess whimpered, and she took a few steps backwards, slipping over clumsily in fear. Her eyes widened, as the monster approached her, his voice raucous, almost like a growl.

"Go away!" He snarled. "No intruders welcomed here!"

Mia whimpered again. She didn't understand what 'intruders' meant, but she had a pretty good idea that her presence was not allowed in the palace.

"P-please!" She stuttered in her young voice, "I go now... Don't hurt me!"

The monster frowned, and picked Mia up. "Get out?" He said, as he began to escort her to the door.

"Marshmallow!" A regal voice sounded through the crisp air. "Put her down!"

The snow monster turned to his Mistress, and nodded, letting go of the Princess so that she fell towards the solid ground, at least ten, fifteen metres below.

"_Mia_!"

* * *

"Good. There are a couple of small villages still left on the outskirts of the kingdom, but hopefully we can stop the ship before they get there."

Rapunzel smiled at her cousin, nodding. "The only villages I had left on my third of the kingdom were the ones in the forests, and that's probably where the people from the Southern Isles would target last."

Anna grinned. "I guess that's all we can do, anyway, and it didn't go that bad, really." Walking back into the castle, Anna and Odd pulled the doors shut, and then hurried to the window to watch the ship's location.

The Princess frowned, as she watched the ship drawing ever closer. Thankfully, the wind had begun to blow towards the Southern Isles' vessel, slowing their approach, but they were still gaining on the kingdom, now only fifty metres, give or take some.

Odd frowned as he surveyed the situation, thinking. "We've got five minutes, I'll say. We've had more time than we did earlier already, but we need Elsa, and it'll only be a few minutes until they start to attack."

Anna felt her heart drop like a rock, plummeting in the sea.

"They haven't found her yet?"

Odd shook his head, sadly, as there came a disturbance from behind them, in the form of a rather panicked looking Eugene Fitzherbert.

"Did you see Kristoff and Mia?" He called, and Anna's eyes widened, as she shook her head worriedly. Eugene frowned, his brow creased in worry. "Mia ran off a while ago, and Kristoff went after her."

Anna gasped. "They're still out there!" She cried, as she rushed off outside.

"Anna!" Rapunzel called after her, but she'd already gone.

* * *

"_Mia_!" Elsa yelled, and she quickly made a large pile of soft snow to cushion the child's fall. "It's okay, Marshmallow. She's a friend."

The snowman bowed his head, his icy spines retracting as he walked slowly off. Elsa rushed over to her niece, and helped to pick her up out of the snow.

"Mia! What are you doing here?" Elsa scolded, but she didn't use too stern a voice, knowing it would just upset the girl if she did. The young Princess looked worriedly at the Queen.

"Arendelle in trouble!" She cried out, "Is a ship coming attack! From the South!"

Elsa gasped, understanding quickly what it meant, and she picked Mia up in a hurry. "Come on, Sweetie - we need to get back to help!"

Forgetting the concerns that had been troubling her, Elsa rushed outside and ran down the icy stairs quickly, nearly slipping a few times, but luckily, she was able to stabilise herself. Reaching the bottom of the grand steps, she launched off the bottom and landed on her feet as if she was riding a snowboard, as a thick trail of ice materialised under her feet.

Holding out her free arm to keep herself balanced, she shot down the hill at an incredible speed, Mia in her arms, with Lysse following quickly behind, not wanting to remain, alone, at the palace.

"Hold on!" Elsa cried out, "We'll be there soon!"

* * *

"Kristoff!" Anna called out, relieved, "There you are! Did you find Mia?" Kristoff hung his head, shaking it. "I've searched and searched, but I just can't find her anywhere."

Anna gasped, as she looked at the mountain. A small tear trickled down her cheek, but then her eyes focused on a massive, blue trail growing at an incredibly fast rate towards Arendelle.

"What is that?" She asked, and she felt the weight upon her heart grow even greater as she feared for her daughter's safety. She rushed over to the edge of the fjord, and her eyes widened as she saw the thick trail of ice approaching.

"Is that-?" Kristoff began, his voice quiet, for he, too, was worried about Mia. She wasn't completely helpless, what with her powers and all, but still, she was so young, and small for her age as it was.

The ice grew towards the pair, and Elsa came sliding into view, Mia grinning in her arms. Anna felt so relieved, and she rushed over, slipping, to grab her baby daughter in her arms, holding her so tightly it was a miracle she could still breath.

"Oh, Mia!" She cried out, tears of relief rolling down her cheeks, "I'm so, so glad you're okay!"

Elsa smiled, but then she noticed the ship in the near-distance, and gasped.

"Come on!" She cried out, "We have to get back to the castle!"

* * *

"There!" The captain commanded, and the men on-board the vessel grinned, turning their canon to face the direction that had been pointed out. The blast was deafening, but it was the projectile that would do the most damage.

* * *

"Watch out!" Elsa cried, as she pushed the group out of the way, narrowly avoiding a flaming, wooden cannon ball. "Get back to the castle! I'll hold them off!"

A few gun shots sounded, and it was obvious that the navy had began to deploy their ships, to try and destroy the enemy's, but it was difficult - the Southern Isles' vessel was so close to the kingdom now, almost a horse's jumping distance away, there was no way to attack it without destroying Arendelle, too.

Anna, Kristoff and Mia rushed to get back to the castle, as they dodged the onslaught of flaming cannon balls. Elsa was having just as hard a time, if not even more difficult, as she attempted to put out the flaming, burning buildings that had been hit.

They managed to get near to the castle, not twenty metres away, when a raucous voice came from the side, making the group jump in shock.

"There's no where to run, now." The voice said, and a man, a cloaked figure, stepped out from the shadows. "It's too late."

Elsa spun on him, positioning her hands, ready to attack, but the man just laughed, as two men jumped from the sides, shoving two tight-fitting gloves onto Elsa's hands. The Queen squirmed, but she could not get them off.

Anna gasped, just as a man leaped from the shadows and pulled her arms behind her back, making her drop Mia on the ground, causing the child to scream out in pain from the sudden pain that ripped through her body. The poor girl lay moaning on the floor, and the Queen and Princess struggled to escape their captors, but to no avail.

Kristoff growled, as he struggled against his constraints - two large ropes tied around both of his hands, tied to the lamp-post behind, but there was no escaping. The men from the southern Isles laughed, as they pulled sharp knifes from their belts, and Mia screamed in fear, snowflakes bursting forth from her palm, swirling around the leader of the group, resting on his nose and placing him in a trance, standing there, doing nothing. The remaining men gasped.

"Grab that brat!" One yelled, and soon, three men were on top of Mia, struggling to keep the squirming child still, while avoiding the icicles shooting up from the ground.

A bullet whizzed past Mia's head by inches, hitting one man in the neck, and warm, dark, crimson red blood shot from the hole, making the baby princess scream in fear, but the men seemed to barely bat an eyelid at their companion, more worried about the guards shooting at them, led by an angry ex-thief.

"Get out of here!" One of the men said, "Go! To the ship!"

"What about-" One began, but a round of bullets passed through his body before he could finish, and that was enough for the other men, leaving their captives where they were, dragging the youngest princess off.

"MIA!" Anna yelled, and, only being tied down loosely, she managed to break free, as Kristoff succeeded also. Elsa managed to rip off her gloves with her teeth and froze the ropes until they simply snapped, but it was too late. The group rushed down to the ship, where Mia was screaming, terrified, not quite able to control her powers enough to stop the people taking her away. Controlling people was still difficult for her.

The wind was blowing away from Arendelle, and by the time Anna, Kristoff and Elsa reached the docks, the ship was already almost out of sight.

"No!" Anna yelled, "No..."

She broke down in tears, as she watched her daughter sail away from her. Elsa quickly used her magic to freeze the sea, but she had no way of knowing if her ice had reached the ship - it was already hard to pin point.

Somewhere in the distance, a young child screamed, as she watched the ice, which had been growing toward her, slow to a halt, not actually encasing the ship at all. She wriggled and writhed against her bonds, and screamed even louder, as a massive icicle, the largest, sharpest and deadliest she'd ever made, shot through the ship.

Mia cried out again, as the ship began to go down, sinking in the freezing November water. The crew rushed around her, terrified as their ship went down, and no one came to help her. The princess sobbed quietly, terrified, but already out of tears to cry.

The tears froze on her face, as she placed her hands on the ropes and squeezed them tightly, relieving her fear and anger, and distracting her from the water beginning to rise around and above her feet.

* * *

**Okay, first of all, I've had a couple of reviews threatening to kill anyone who doesn't review. Sure, I love comments, but seriously... now I'm just scared :P**

**Anyway, I also had a comment requesting that I bring the challenges back, and I don't think that would be a bad idea. What do you guys think - bring them back, or not? (If I do, I may need some help with them)**

**Oh, and just a note in response to a review, I aim to update every three to four days. Occasionally I'll go over, and sometimes I might be under, but that's the general time guidelines :P**

**Either way, please review, because you know how much it means to me! I quite enjoyed writing this chapter, and even though I've been a bit busy, I managed to write it! Yay! Go me!**

**Haha, please review, and make sure to spread the word about the story! I'd love for it to become one of the most read frozen stories - let's see if we can achieve it!**


	11. Chapter 11 - dedicated to natsuxlucyONLY

_**The wind was blowing away from Arendelle, and by the time Anna, Kristoff and Elsa reached the docks, the ship was already almost out of sight.**_

_**"No!" Anna yelled, "No..."**_

_**She broke down in tears, as she watched her daughter sail away from her. Elsa quickly used her magic to freeze the sea, but she had no way of knowing if her ice had reached the ship - it was already hard to pin point.**_

_**Somewhere in the distance, a young child screamed, as she watched the ice, which had been growing toward her, slow to a halt, not actually encasing the ship at all. She wriggled and writhed against her bonds, and screamed even louder, as a massive icicle, the largest, sharpest and deadliest she'd ever made, shot through the ship.**_

_**Mia cried out again, as the ship began to go down, sinking in the freezing November water. The crew rushed around her, terrified as their ship went down, and no one came to help her. The princess sobbed quietly, terrified, but already out of tears to cry.**_

_**The tears froze on her face, as she placed her hands on the ropes and squeezed them tightly, relieving her fear and anger, and distracting her from the water beginning to rise around and above her feet.**_

* * *

Mia sobbed as she rocked herself back and forth, over and over again, her arms wrapped around her legs. Freezing, icy cold water was now swirling around her ankles, gradually rising up, each inch agonising, and her hands, which were resting in the water, were deadly cold. The below-zero temperatures didn't affect her, but she knew she was going to drown, and the thought absolutely terrified her.

"Mama! Papa!" She cried out, before the tears began to choke her and she stopped crying for them.

_Please help me..._

* * *

"Anna, no!" Elsa cried, as she dragged her younger sister back from the edge of the dock, where frozen ice rested atop the seas. "The guards will get Mia back. Don't worry, just have faith."

Still, no matter how much she told herself that everything would be okay, Elsa couldn't quite believe it. She glanced out over the frozen sea, and sighed.

"You know what," she said, sullenly, "You're right. We can't leave Mia's fate to someone else." Glancing around, she noticed Rapunzel running over, and sighed.

"Rapunzel!" She cried, "We're going for a bit; take care of Arendelle and the villagers in the meantime, please."

Rapunzel shook her head, as Eugene came galloping over with Maximus. "I'm coming with you." she said, her voice stating 'that's final'. "I've arranged things already; Odd's more than happy to take charge."

Elsa looked a little unsure - she didn't doubt Odd, rather he simply had not had experience, and she didn't want him getting stressed or worried. Still, there was no other option.

"Fine."

Gingerly stepping onto the ice, Elsa sighed as she deemed it to be okay, and beckoned Anna and Kristoff over. The couple began to run, quickly, over the frozen water, and Sven came galloping heavily over, his cloven hooves making a ringing clang as they contacted rhythmically with the ice.

Taking a deep breath in, Elsa thrust her hands behind her, and used her magic to create a strong gust of cold air, forcing herself forwards as if she was sliding on ice skates. With the added help of the wind, she managed to pick up a decent pace, but was it quick enough?

* * *

"Enlighten me, Brother," Alec said, as he doodled on a piece of paper. "Why not kill the Arendellians straight out? Wouldn't that simply, you know, make things so much easier?"

Hans chuckled, as he slapped his brother on the back. "You need to think about the bigger picture, Alec." He said, his voice cruel and cold.

"If we can slowly torture the Arendellians, emotionally first, perhaps physically later on, this will add fear to other countries. We can't arrange a full scale attack on Arendelle, but, with them nervous, they'll be clumsy when we go to war with Corona. They'll make stupid mistakes. Elsa will, I expect, go with her army to help, perhaps with that new Prince of hers, leaving her sister and that ice harvester behind, with the young princess. Of course, that all depends on who they manage to capture tonight.

"While at war against us, Arendelle will be weak and they won't have many men left, nor a decent ruler. Princess Anna is hardly qualified. With their men gone to war, and their Queen gone also, we can take over them, and the people will fear us; they won't revolt because they will value their lives. People will do crazy things when they're scared.

"Once again, fear is the main ingredient in our plan. We need to develop this fear, nurture it from a seed, to a sprout, to a full-grown plant. That will give us the advantage, being the only ones with the power of logical thinking remaining. Others will be acting on instinct, and instinct is not reliable.

"After we claim Arendelle, not only will the Southern Isles grow stronger again, like it used to be, but we will also have direct routes to other kingdoms. We'll easily be able to launch surprise attacks on Corona, and end the war, killing their Queen and Prince, along with Queen Elsa and Prince Odd. From there, we'll have good routes to Kingdoms such as Becrux, which are indispensable, what with their coal mines."

Alec frowned, but he kept his mouth shut as he rose up. The candles flickered slightly, then were extinguished, as he made his way to the door. Bowing to his younger brother, he swept gracefully out of the door, and Hans snarled under his breath.

_Lucky bastard, _he thought, savagely_, coming and going as he likes. Still, though, I'd have nothing without him - bah! How I hate to have debts._

Hans looked out of the tiny window in the wall of his new prison. Much more homely than the cells, but still horrid.

_Well, when we set this plan into action, they'll be praising us for pulling it off, and then my debt'll be repaid. He'd be nothing without me, either._

Hans clenched his fists. _All good things to those who wait._

* * *

Mia gasped as the water rose up past her waist, and she shivered, her body's natural reaction to cold, though it was hardly necessary - she didn't feel the cold.

She glanced fearfully at the ropes binding her hands, and then something occurred to her - icicles had managed to make the boat sink, by smashing a hole somewhere, right? What was to say they couldn't cut ropes too?

Concentrating, the young princess managed to wriggle her hand around to face the other, and, squeezing her eyes shut, she made and icicle burst up from under the icy sea water. She groaned when the ice missed it's mark, and desperately began trying to rub the string against it, eventually fraying it enough to break her wrist free.

She sighed, but gasped quietly when she noticed the water up to the middle of her chest, now.

Directing her now free hand towards the other, she took a few seconds to gather herself, before shooting the icicle up, and the point made it's mark, slashing the rope clean in half. The young princess sighed, and she waved her hands in the air above her head triumphantly, before crying out in shock as the water around her rapidly began to freeze.

Quickly, she pulled her hands back to her chest, trying to stop the ice from spreading, but it was too late; the ice was too thick, and surrounded Mia's body completely, trapping her in the sinking ship.

She cried out in fear, as the ice continued to thicken around her, trapping her. She wiggled her feet in the freezing sea water, still a liquid under the ice, and more tears began to leak out of the side of her eyes.

Desperately, she held out her palms and concentrated on the love that came from her mother, her father, Aunt Elsa and Odd, and squeezed her eyes tightly shut in concentration. Squinting them open again just the slightest, she grinned as a little bit of the ice began to thaw away, slowly but surely. Smiling, she lost focus, then suddenly, the memory of her captor's was forced back into her mind.

She gasped quietly, before focusing on her family's love, but what was done was done, and no matter how she tried, she couldn't quite manage to thaw any more ice.

She watched as the few crew members still on the ship jumped into a small wooden lifeboat dangling from the side of the ship, and began to lower themselves down. The princess gasped, as a thought occurred to her - she'd been forbidden to ever use her powers of controlling people, unless it was an absolute emergency. This was an emergency, right?

Focusing, she made a few snowflakes, and tried to direct them towards the crew members, but she'd never anticipated that the wind would counter her powers.

The child let her arms fall limp, as the snowflake blew away on the breeze. Her body was wracked with scared sobs as she waited to solidify in ice.

Either that, or drown.

What had she done to deserve this?

* * *

"Mia!" Anna cried out, as she galloped with Kristoff, on Sven's back, across the slippery, icy terrain. Elsa was skating next to them, keeping up with the reindeer's frantic pace, and Maximus was on her left, not as accustomed to the friction-less matter as Sven was, skidding along more often than he was running.

"The ship doesn't appear to be moving!" Elsa cried out, in reply to her sister's yells, and the Princess looked slightly reassured. Rapunzel, however, had noticed something the others had not.

"What is that?" She queried, as she squinted to get a better view. She gasped in shock. "Oh, my..."

Anna looked terrified, but she couldn't bring herself to speak. Kristoff tightened his grip on her, protectively, drawing her closer.

"What is it, Rapunzel?" He said, slowly, carefully, his voice shaking only the very slightest. Rapunzel shook her head, not wanting to say anything.

Eugene looked over at the Prince, Princess and Queen of Arendelle, his normally cheerful expression grim.

"There's what looks like a massive icicle right through the middle of the boat. It's going to sink."

Anna gasped, and let out a short wail of despair. Kristoff looked stunned for a second, but soon after, an expression of determination replaced the worry.

"Come on, Buddy, faster!" He yelled, as he kicked Sven on and wrapped his arm tightly around Anna, supporting her. Elsa's forehead creased in concentration as she forced herself to go faster, and Maximus neighed loudly as he focused on slipping as little as possible, consequentially going faster.

"Let's go!" Elsa cried, and a look of reckless exhilaration grew upon her face, as the snowy hair flew around her face. Her eyes sparkled with determination.

* * *

Mia paused, as she heard the sound of thudding hoof-beats, and stretched her neck up to get a look, but she was too small, and could not see above the wooden sides of the ship.

A few seconds passed, before the thuds grew steadily louder, and then they stopped suddenly, as a shaggy-coated animal came launching over the side of the sinking, icy ship, followed by a scrambling sound.

Mia's eyes lit up. "'Ysse!" She cried out, and beckoned for the reindeer, who came over and snuggled up to her friend, not aware that the boat was sinking steadily. The scratching stopped as a large, over-grown canine came bounding onto the icy ship also, and then a boy, with black hair and large, blue eyes, and only one arm, came flopping over too.

"Arne!" Mia greeted, relieved, and the boy assessed the situation quickly.

"Mia! You have to thaw the ice!" He shouted, and the Princess looked down, sadly.

"I can't, Arne. It doesn't work." She said, and the boy looked worried. He glanced around, and noticed a large hammer, not too far away. He grinned triumphantly.

Rushing over, he grabbed the tool, and began to make his way back, as a creaking noise began to be heard. He paused, confused, and then suddenly, the ship, frozen, began to crack. Arne began to rush back to join Mia, but he was too slow, and a massive, gaping hole appeared in the middle of the ship, as the wooden floor gave way, and the sides of the ship cracked.

Mia and Arne screamed in sync, as the two halves of the ship began to capsize. The boy, looked around in fear, as he grabbed onto the side to stop himself falling into the sea, and threw the hammer as far as he could. Seier leaped to grab it, before dropping it in Mia's hands.

"Arne!" She cried out, and the boy looked back at her, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Break the ice, Mia!" He yelled back, "I'll be okay! Go to a safe place! Don't worry 'bout me!"

Mia opened her mouth to reply, but then Arne let go, saluting her as he slid down the slippery floor, and, with a splash, fell into the sea below.

The princess screamed for him, and grabbed the hammer, banging at the ice she'd made desperately, as Lysse and Seier began to struggle to remain on the slowly capsizing ship.

It only took a few moments, and one well-aimed blow, to smash the ice, and Mia scrambled to the edge carefully, but Arne was no where in sight. She slipped a little, and Alyssa grabbed her dress, pulling her back up, with some difficulty, but the cracked ice had more friction than when it was smooth.

Mia wailed for her friend, as she climbed onto her reindeer' snack and held on tightly as Lysse jumped, trying to get over the side. The ship was at too much of an angle now, though, and as the reindeer landed, she lost all grip on the ice and went hurtling down the slope, falling off the end and into the sea.

Seier yelped, as he slid down and launched into the waters below following them, just as the ship creaked, splashing down in the water and sinking, trapping Mia, Seier and Lysse under it's wooden body.

Mia screamed, as she took a desperate mouthful of air and went under the water.

* * *

**Yay! The response last chapter was better! Well done guys; keep it up!**

**Now, here's a challenge for you all: in the reviews, leave an event you want to happen, and I will choose at least one to come true later on! Don't miss out on this chance to have your say! Yay!**

**Please keep on reviewing,**

**-SG**


	12. Chapter 12 - dedicated to blackknght

_**"Arne!" Mia greeted, relieved, and the boy assessed the situation quickly.**_

_**"Mia! You have to thaw the ice!" He shouted, and the Princess looked down, sadly.**_

_**"I can't, Arne. It doesn't work." She said, and the boy looked worried. He glanced around, and noticed a large hammer, not too far away. He grinned triumphantly.**_

_**Rushing over, he grabbed the tool, and began to make his way back, as a creaking noise began to be heard. He paused, confused, and then suddenly, the ship, frozen, began to crack. Arne began to rush back to join Mia, but he was too slow, and a massive, gaping hole appeared in the middle of the ship, as the wooden floor gave way, and the sides of the ship cracked.**_

_**Mia and Arne screamed in sync, as the two halves of the ship began to capsize. The boy, looked around in fear, as he grabbed onto the side to stop himself falling into the sea, and threw the hammer as far as he could. Seier leaped to grab it, before dropping it in Mia's hands.**_

_**"Arne!" She cried out, and the boy looked back at her, tears streaming down her cheeks.**_

_**"Break the ice, Mia!" He yelled back, "I'll be okay! Go to a safe place! Don't worry 'bout me!"**_

_**Mia opened her mouth to reply, but then Arne let go, saluting her as he slid down the slippery floor, and, with a splash, fell into the sea below.**_

_**The princess screamed for him, and grabbed the hammer, banging at the ice she'd made desperately, as Lysse and Seier began to struggle to remain on the slowly capsizing ship.**_

_**It only took a few moments, and one well-aimed blow, to smash the ice, and Mia scrambled to the edge carefully, but Arne was no where in sight. She slipped a little, and Alyssa grabbed her dress, pulling her back up, with some difficulty, but the cracked ice had more friction than when it was smooth.**_

_**Mia wailed for her friend, as she climbed onto her reindeer' snack and held on tightly as Lysse jumped, trying to get over the side. The ship was at too much of an angle now, though, and as the reindeer landed, she lost all grip on the ice and went hurtling down the slope, falling off the end and into the sea.**_

_**Seier yelped, as he slid down and launched into the waters below following them, just as the ship creaked, splashing down in the water and sinking, trapping Mia, Seier and Lysse under it's wooden body.**_

_**Mia screamed, as she took a desperate mouthful of air and went under the water.**_

* * *

They were close, so close, when the sound of a young child's screams reached the ears of every member of the group, a loud, ear piercing cry that made the hearts of each person drop like a stone, leaving just an empty, hollow space in it's place.

"_Mia_..." Anna whispered, her voice, already weak from fear, barely audible, even to Kristoff, who was sat just behind her. A sob wracked her body, as Sven galloped harder, more determined.

Elsa squinted at the massive ship, and noticed something odd; the strange angle at which the craft was laying in the water, and gasped quietly to herself when her brain processed the issue.

"Oh my gosh..."

* * *

Mia's little arms thrashed wildly, as instinct told her to try and resurface, but it was no use - she had never learnt to swim, and one could not pick up the skill in one day.

Lysse was kicking, too, but in a much calmer manner, doggy paddling to get out from under the sinking boat. Her strikes were weak, for she could not breath, but the little doe was stubborn, determined to get to safety.

Mia moaned in the back of her throat, as her body, desperate for air, began to convulse, trying to force her to take a breath, but the princess refused - she knew if she did, all she'd swallow would be water, and she'd drown. Holding tightly to Lysse, she placed a hand over her mouth and squeezed her eyes shut tighter, as she began to feel dizzy. Involuntarily, she groaned a little, her lips parting slightly, and a trickle of salty water trickled into her mouth. She quickly shut her mouth and swallowed the water, cringing at the unpleasant taste that made her throat feel as if it were on fire.

Squinting her eyes open, ignoring the stinging pain that came from the salty water, Mia could see the blue sky up above and weakly patted Lysse's shoulder, encouraging the doe on, who was now kicking with all her strength, but not progressing very quickly, and then her legs slowly began to still, as she ran out of oxygen.

Mia felt a pang of fear in her chest as she and Lysse began to slowly sink, and the last thing she remembered was hearing an echoing splash and seeing a grey blur in front of her eyes, as they began to drop further and further from the surface.

* * *

Sven bleated as he reached the edge of the ice, panting tiredly, as Anna and Kristoff virtually dived off of his back, rushing to look into the water.

Anna sobbed sadly. "Kristoff! Kris, oh, where is she!" She moaned, as she searched the salty water again for any sign of life. There was clearly no sign of her on the now sunken ship, meaning she was somewhere under the water.

Elsa gasped as she slid to a stop on the ice, as she, too, looked around, searching for Mia, but to no avail.

"Oh, Anna..." She said, as small tears escaped her eyes. "I can't see her..."

Anna scowled, as she pushed away from Kristoff. "She's okay!" She shouted, determined that her daughter was still alive, and before anyone could stop her, she dove into the water, spluttering slightly and shivering from the icy sea. Hurriedly, she began to swim forward, trying not to splash around too much so that she caused too many ripples to see under the water, in case she could see Mia.

"Anna!" Kristoff yelled, as he dove in after her, shivering also, and Elsa screamed as her sister swam out to sea.

Anna splashed around wildly as her husband wrapped his strong arms around her waist, trying to pull her back to land. "Come on, Anna!" He said, trying to resist the Princess' resistance.

"No, Kristoff!" She cried out, kicking him in the groin, and he released her as he groaned. She quickly began to swim away, towards the ship, and it took all of her will power to keep going, as her limbs began to feel heavy and slow, the cold water rapidly effecting her for the worst.

She reached out with her arms to keep herself going, but she could not get her limbs to work, as she lost feeling in them, and she struggled to continue kicking, as she flailed around, trying to stay afloat, her movements getting quickly weaker.

Kristoff gasped, as did Elsa, and the pair quickly swam over to the Princess. The cold water did not affect the Queen, luckily, but the Prince was another matter, as he felt his own limbs begin to go numb, and he had to fight to keep his movements quick, so that he'd stay warmer, and would not falter and sink, as he noticed with a start, that Anna was beginning to go down under the water.

He gasped again, and he and Elsa moved faster, trying to reach the Princess. He wrapped his strong arms around his wife's small, freezing cold body, and began to pull her back to the ice, which Elsa hastily expanded to make the man's job easier.

Reaching the frozen ledge, Kristoff felt his arms begin to stop working, and he quickly threw Anna up onto the ice, as his movements stopped, and he gasped as him leaden, numb arms refused to work, and his legs stopped responding too. He tried to grab hold of the ice, but he couldn't seem to work his fingers, and he took a deep gasp of air as his head slipped under the water.

* * *

_Oh, god,_ Kristoff thought, as he felt his body sliding under the water. He writhed his body, the only movements he could manage, as his freezing body finally shut down, his quest to save Anna complete, and his eyes slid shut, as he slipped out of the conscious world.

* * *

"Kristoff!" Elsa yelled, and Sven bleated loudly, as he rushed to the water's edge and plunged his head under, yanking it back up with Kristoff's royal jacket caught on his antlers.

Snorting as he fought to keep his grip on the slippery ice, he closed his eyes and dragged his friend onto the ground, and Elsa gasped at the sight of Kristoff. Anna also let out a small, weak, quiet breath, as she opened her eyes slightly, shivering and only just conscious. She was confused, and slightly delusional, not able to make sense of everything, but she knew that her husband was seriously sick.

Rapunzel rushed over to Kristoff quickly, as she began to wrap her hair around his freezing cold body. Elsa went over to her sister, and sat down beside her, gently squeezing her hand for reassurance. The princess quietly muttered, "_Mia_...", as she shivered again, and the Queen looked down at her with large, sympathetic eyes. There was nothing they could do for her now.

Eugene came over to the two sisters, as he pulled off his cloak and draped it over the smaller girl's back. The thin material was not designed to keep out freezing cold, but it might help her, at least a little.

Elsa glanced towards Kristoff, as Rapunzel finished her song and her hair stopped glowing. She looked down, to see if her magic had worked, and gasped when she noticed the man's skin was still blue, and he was still unconscious.

"Oh, my..." She gasped, as she looked apologetically to the others. "Ever since I regained my powers, they've never been quite the same. They are a bit... unpredictable sometimes, and not as strong. Kristoff's really sick; my magic can't help him."

Elsa's eyes widened, as she stood up, helping a weak Anna to stand as well. The princess stood on wobbly, unstable legs, but she was upright all the same, and she managed to get herself onto Elsa's horse, with her sister supporting her from behind.

Sven bent down to pick up Kristoff in his antlers, and quickly, before Rapunzel and Eugene even got onto Maximus' back, he'd set off at a gallop towards the castle.

Anna's eyes fluttered slightly, as she forced them to stay open. She knew, deep down, that Mia was gone, but she couldn't quite comprehend the facts. Her brain had begun to shut itself down as she began to freeze in the sea water, and was incapable of comprehending things.

She slowly glanced out to the sea, and knew her daughter was somewhere out there.

_Please be okay..._

* * *

**Oh, dear... Will Kristoff, Mia and Anna be okay? Dun dun dun!**

**Once again, I've got a lot less reviews on this chapter than normal. There's ****becoming a pattern here, one chapter I'll get a normal amount of reviews, and the next, I get half of what I normally do. **

**Please, please, please review! I didn't get many last chapter, so I didn't have much 'get-up-and-go' to write this chapter. Please review - it'll help me update sooner!**

**-SG**


	13. Chapter 13 - dedicated to AFoolishFool

_**Elsa's eyes widened, as she stood up, helping a weak Anna to stand as well. The princess stood on wobbly, unstable legs, but she was upright all the same, and she managed to get herself onto Elsa's horse, with her sister supporting her from behind.**_

_**Sven bent down to pick up Kristoff in his antlers, and quickly, before Rapunzel and Eugene even got onto Maximus' back, he'd set off at a gallop towards the castle.**_

_**Anna's eyes fluttered slightly, as she forced them to stay open. She knew, deep down, that Mia was gone, but she couldn't quite comprehend the facts. Her brain had begun to shut itself down as she began to freeze in the sea water, and was incapable of comprehending things.**_

_**She slowly glanced out to the sea, and knew her daughter was somewhere out there.**_

_**Please be okay...**_

* * *

Seier panted, as he kicked his paws quickly through the water, the reindeer and small child laid upon his back like a useless sack of potatoes. He struggled to keep them in position, diving down rapidly every time the two unconscious beings submerged under the water again.

Scraping his claws along the ice, trying to get a grip on the slippery material, he growled quietly and heaved his body up, quickly grabbing Mia and Lysse before they fell back under the surface. Grunting, he sunk to the ice, sitting down before his two rescued friends, and his large eyes glinted in the light, as he protected them, a self-appointed guard.

Seier remained faithfully at their side, very tempted to find Anna, whom he saw as his only mother, but he knew where his place was, and that was here, with the youngest Princess and her little pet reindeer.

The sun passed across the sky slowly, and the blue eventually began to fade to a deep red, and finally, blackness. The wolf didn't understand why his 'mother' hadn't come to find Mia yet, but he still didn't move, not leaving the girl's side.

Eventually, Mia's eyes opened, and the child coughed and spluttered as she awoke. Her eyes were wide, and she was clearly scared, and Seier nuzzled up to her to comfort the child, wrapping his body around her.

After a few minutes, the wolf stood back up, his teeth pulling up the fabric of the child's dress with him. Mia stood slowly, with weak, shaking legs, and she had to lean on Seier for support, as Lysse slowly stood up too, helping her friend make her way across the ice.

"Thank, you, Seier..." Mia said gently, her voice weak, and she smiled at him through the dark of the night. In response, however, the wolf simply growled, his hackles raised, and he spun around to face the sea again.

Mia turned around too, but her human eyes, her human nose, her human ears, were all weak compared to that of Seier, and all she could pick out was the distinctive aroma of Lysse, and the splashing of the waves.

"What is it, Seier?" She asked, and turned her head to look at the animal, who looked back at her, then yelped loudly, falling to the ground with a loud thud, and Mia cried out. Despite the fact that her ears were not finely attuned, the heavy beats of a man's running footsteps could easily be heard.

Mia gasped as she spun around, and a large pair of rough hands clamped around her mouth. She wriggled, writhing, terrified, and another man lifted her easily off the ground. Her short, thrashing legs made no contact, and even when she heard Lysse's distinctive 'battle cry', there came no rescue, was no escaping her captors. The reindeer was thrown aside with an easy kick, and lay on the ice, unconscious for the second time that day.

"Help!" She yelled against the hands, but her voice was muffled, and there was no one near to hear her. The men tightened their grip on her, and, terrified, she was thrown onto a boat - a small lifeboat, she guessed, - completely trapped.

She cried as she felt a gag forced roughly into her small mouth, and the tears would not stop going, as she felt the boat riding the waves, as it rowed away, leaving home far behind in the distance, like a memory.

* * *

**Just a short little filler chapter. Short, but necessary. At any rate, this chapter's out a day after the last one, so you can't be too picky ;)**

**Please, tell me your comments. What do you think happened?**

**You know I love reviews; don't deprive me!**

**Don't forget, the best reviewer gets the chapter _dedicated_ to them! Yay!**

**-SG**


	14. Chapter 14 - dedicated to KLime (guest)

_**Mia gasped as she spun around, and a large pair of rough hands clamped around her mouth. She wriggled, writhing, terrified, and another man lifted her easily off the ground. Her short, thrashing legs made no contact, and even when she heard Lysse's distinctive 'battle cry', there came no rescue, was no escaping her captors. The reindeer was thrown aside with an easy kick, and lay on the ice, unconscious for the second time that day.**_

_**"Help!" She yelled against the hands, but her voice was muffled, and there was no one near to hear her. The men tightened their grip on her, and, terrified, she was thrown onto a boat - a small lifeboat, she guessed, - completely trapped.**_

_**She cried as she felt a gag forced roughly into her small mouth, and the tears would not stop going, as she felt the boat riding the waves, as it rowed away, leaving home far behind in the distance, like a memory.**_

* * *

Anna's head jerked up quickly as she heard the distinctive, tell-tale creaking which indicated that the door was being opened, and her fingers curled into the fabric of her duvet, anxious, hungry for information. She could feel the mattress of the bed sagging as Kristoff, who had gotten over his case of hypothermia just the day before, with help from Rapunzel, came beside her, just as eager and desperate as she, and his eyes were virtually pleading the maid for good news.

Heidi stopped slowly beside the door, hiding partially behind the mahogany so that only half of her body could be seen, as she peeked around to look at the couple. She hung her head, shaking it slowly, and Anna let out a sob, as her eyes dropped to stare at the ground, her plaited pigtails dangling in the air. Kristoff, too, was distraught, as he wrapped his arms around Anna and pulled her closer.

"I'm sorry, Ma'am, Sir. The soldiers have searched all over the kingdom for Mia; they've combed every single forest in which she could have reached, but to no avail. I can hold my breath for two minutes, and I've searched the sea bed, as far as I can go, but there is still no sign of her." She took a deep breath, as she carefully wiped a tear from her eye. The fifteen year old girl looked so solemn, so mature, and the grief shone in her eyes just as much as it did in Anna, Kristoff and Elsa's. No doubt, she was remembering her own deceased child.

Anna took a shaky breath, as she clutched Kristoff's arm to support herself. "Are you sure there's now where else to look?"

Heidi shook her head, and a small lock of hair fell out from her bun. "Not that I know of, Ma'am." She said in response, "There are some navy boats searching the seas for her, trying to see if she's been captured again before she drowned, or perhaps she was taken off of the boat with the sailors when it sunk. Still... It may be a whlie yet before we hear back. They have a large area to cover."

Anna hung her head, and Kristoff sighed, fighting the tears. Mia hardly ever cried - to him, it felt like showing her respect, by following in her example. Even if he should be setting the example for her.

Heidi watched the distraught couple for a few more awkward, silent seconds, and sighed. "If you'd like, Ma'am, Sir, I can search the forest once more? Perhaps I might have a little more luck?"

Anna and Kristoff didn't look reassured, but the Princess smiled a weak, wobbly smile all the same.

"Thank you, Heidi." She said, "I'd appreciate that."

The maid curtsied, and then silently left the room, leaving the two mourning, terrified parents in their reflective, concerned solitude again.

Anna's eyes slowly trailed the walls, until they came to a rest at the windows, where a gentle layer of frost was forming, slowly, crystal by crystal. A fresh round of tears threatened to fall, and she closed her eyes, sobbing silent, dry cries.

_I know you're out there, Mia... Just let me find you. _

She squinted her eyes open again, and a single snowflake blew upwards on the wind. It was a large snowflake, and Anna instantly recognised it as Elsa's.

_Please?_

* * *

"Please... stop..." Elsa whispered, as gentle snowflakes continued to fall around the room. Things were not nearly as bad as they had been in the past, but now, she was terrified and unable to control her powers completely. A large snowflake drifted out of the window gently, flying around in the breeze outside, before it blew out of sight.

Elsa couldn't help it, as she remembered Mia's capture, a week ago, and a sob wracked her body, as she wrapped her arms around her stomach, trying to comfort herself.

Eventually, the tears stopped, and Elsa ran her hands over her hair gently, stretching them behind her as she began to make her way to the door. The handle froze over with ice instantly, but she tried to ignore it, to block it out.

_Conceal, don't feel._ She thought, out of instinct, but the phrase only made anger bubble up in her chest, rather than sorrow, and did nothing to thaw the slight blue ice clinging desperately on the ceiling, nor did it warm the room, which had decreased in temperature significantly.

After what seemed like years, the Queen found who she was looking for - Kai - and went nervously over to him, coughing slightly to get his attention. The man startled for a second, but he quickly got over the initial shock.

"Has there been any news on the whereabouts of Princess Mia?" Elsa asked, cautiously, but she didn't need to wait for Kai's response, for his features clearly read, 'No'. She muttered, "Thanks anyway," And then quickly ran past him, sobbing again, leaving the man in a state of confusion at what had happened.

Soon, there were no tears left for Elsa to cry, and so, her body heaved with dry sobs as she progressed through the corridors, eventually finding herself in the castle courtyard, where the wind blowing slightly, and her dress blew about in the breeze.

The sky was dark with clouds, and it was clear there would be a storm soon. Elsa turned to return inside, never being much of a fan of storms, especially after her Winter, five years ago. Quickly, she turned back around when she noticed something glinting in the cold sunlight, and spun to see Odd, dressed in his royal uniform, the light bouncing off of his single medal, which hung proudly on his chest. He was walking out of the stables with Brandy Shot, his dun-coloured stallion, in tow, and looked momentarily shocked when he saw Elsa standing, staring at him.

The Queen glared at him, as she stormed over, her eyes freely displaying her anger.

"Where are you going!" She snapped, crossing her arms, and Odd tried not to sigh in annoyance.

"Elsa..." He began, but he silenced himself when his wife held up her hand, her posture telling Odd that she wasn't in the mood for arguing.

"Odd, it's not safe. I've already asked you not to go. You can't just go... running out there. Someone might be waiting for you, and I've already lost Mia this week; I don't want to lose you too! "

Odd frowned. "I'm a grown man, Elsa." He said, a trace of annoyance creeping into his voice. "I can make my own decisions, and I can look after myself. You forget that I have done since I was thirteen."

Elsa sighed. "I know, Odd." She said, her tone a little softer, but then she felt the anger bubble up again, and she almost cried out in frustration as her emotions went haywire. Her voice was sharp as she snapped back, "But why do you _need_ to go out there, anyway!"

Odd clenched his fists at the Queen, scowling. "Elsa, I've been trapped in the castle for a week, and I just need to get out. It's my job, for a start, remember? The one you assigned me?"

"One I can take away just as easily!"

Odd huffed. "Look, Elsa. Just because you're being paranoid, doesn't mean that I have to remain cooped up in the castle forever. I can't stay trapped, I need to be free." His eyes dropped to the floor sadly. "I thought you, of all people, would understand that."

Elsa felt a low growl emerge in the back of her throat. "This is pathetic, Odd! Just because you can't get your own way..."

"_My_ own way!" Odd interrupted, "You're the one complaining that I won't do _exactly_ what you want me to do!"

"Just because _you_ can't get _your_ own way," She repeated hotly, "Doesn't mean that you have to run off and have a tantrum! There's plenty to do here; I don't see why you need to go to the forests just for the sake of it."

"Is that so!" Odd yelled, "Well, I think you need to stop thinking about yourself all of the time!" He raised the pitch of his voice, so that his words were a mock imitation of Elsa's. "_I don't want to lose you too, Odd!"_ He yelled, and glared as he jumped onto Brandy's back, fuming. "Maybe, stop thinking about what you want all the time, and perhaps you could just _consider _how crazy it makes me to be cooped up all of the time!"

Elsa's eyes widened, then they thinned again as she felt a new wave of anger pour over her. "If that's what you think, then _fine_!" She snapped, "Go off and be an idiot! After all, I shouldn't stop you just because I care about you and don't want you getting hurt. So, go! Go away, and have a nice time in the forests, as you risk your life and my sanity! I'll be fine!"

Odd huffed. "Fine, then!" He yelled back, "Have a nice afternoon, and don't miss me too much - if this is how it's going to be, then I'm not sure I really want to come back!"

Turning Brandy Shot around, Odd kicked his stallion on, as Elsa spun and stormed angrily back into the castle, running through the corridors, fuelled by her anger, until she reached her and Odd's bedroom, and collapsed on the bed, her emotions switching from rage to regret in an instant.

Elsa clutched the sheets in her hands tightly, as she cried into the duvet, eventually falling asleep, exhausted and heart broken.

* * *

Odd sighed with relief as he galloped through the forests, feeling free and happy. In his heart, the unease from his fight with Elsa was still present, but the exhilaration he felt completely overruled it.

He whooped with glee as he jumped over a fallen log, and, feeling Brandy's heavy breathing decided to rest for a while. Sitting down next to the stallion, he watched as a fox dragged a mouse into the bushes, and he felt a little for the creature; it was almost definitely doomed.

After a few minutes, he stood back up and got back onto his horse's back. Despite his anger at Elsa, he couldn't stay out here forever - his old home had finally fallen down, and he had no shelter from the wind that was beginning to swirl around him. He kicked Brandy into a gallop, and began to head back to the kingdom.

* * *

The crack of a whip sliced through the still, silent air of the cave, closely followed by the terrified, agonised cries of a young child.

Mia lay, sobbing loudly, on the cold, sharp, stony floor, as the belt cracked on her side again, and she screamed loudly at the fresh new pain on her side. Tears rolled freely down her cheeks, as she curled into a ball instinctively, and a man growled behind her.

The young princess whimpered in between her sobs as she heard loud footsteps coming in her direction, and a sharp cry escaped her cracked lips as she received a sharp kick in the side. Her attacked huffed, and kicked her once again for good measure, before turning and leaving the cave room, slamming a wooden door for good measure.

The young princess lay, curled up in a ball, moaning on the rocky ground, and she hid her head between her knees, wincing at the pain in her side. Laying flatter, she tried to make an icy light with her magic, although she was not at all surprised when she failed, her gloves stopping her from using her magic properly. The gloves reached all of the way up her arms, and were tied together tightly behind her neck, so that it was difficult to move her arms, and impossible to undo herself.

She knew that gloves had always concealed all of her aunt's powers, but her magic was stronger; though she could not use her magic properly, she could at least succeed in making the gloves glow.

With difficulty, Mia raised her arms as high above her head as she could, and then, straining her neck and moaning, she tried to look at her injuries. She winced when she saw the dark purple bruises, and sobbed as a fresh wave of pain wracked her body. Looking closer, she noticed blood trickling down her side from the center of the purple stain on her normally pale skin, and she lay her forehead on the ground in submission, as more sobs escaped her.

The pain was overwhelming, but over the last seven days, she'd grown used to the constant agony. She didn't know what she'd done to get herself punished like this, but she did know that she couldn't take much more of it.

Crying herself to sleep, she managed to catch a few hours of fitful rest, plagued with nightmares and fears, and she woke up shaking each time.

_"_Help, Mama, Papa..._" _She whispered, every time she awoke, quietly. "I sorry. Please, come and get me. I did wrong. I sorry..."

She's been saying the same thing repetitively over the past seven days. The only thing that had changed, was that she was beginning to believe her own words, beginning to believe her parents were punishing her for something she'd done wrong. Pain had been her life, and it had begun to control all reasonable thoughts in her brain, had changed memories to feed it's dastardly purpose : to make the child suffer.

_What did I do? _She sobbed as she fell back to sleep, only to be woken in fifteen minutes to the sharp snap of a whip on fresh skin.

"I sorry..."


	15. Chapter 15 - dedicated to Spring Summer

_**The pain was overwhelming, but over the last seven days, she'd grown used to the constant agony. She didn't know what she'd done to get herself punished like this, but she did know that she couldn't take much more of it.**_

_**Crying herself to sleep, she managed to catch a few hours of fitful rest, plagued with nightmares and fears, and she woke up shaking each time.**_

_**"Help, Mama, Papa..." She whispered, every time she awoke, quietly. "I sorry. Please, come and get me. I did wrong. I sorry..."**_

_**She's been saying the same thing repetitively over the past seven days. The only thing that had changed, was that she was beginning to believe her own words, beginning to believe her parents were punishing her for something she'd done wrong. Pain had been her life, and it had begun to control all reasonable thoughts in her brain, had changed memories to feed it's dastardly purpose : to make the child suffer.**_

_**What did I do? She sobbed as she fell back to sleep, only to be woken in fifteen minutes to the sharp snap of a whip on fresh skin.**_

_**"I sorry..."**_

* * *

Elsa awoke with a start, and felt her heart drop from her chest when she realised Odd was still not back. Though she would not admit it, she had secretly hoped that he would have come back during the night, and that when she awoke, he would be laying next to her in bed.

Clearly, it wasn't the case.

The Queen sighed, as she got up slowly and went over to her intricately decorated vanity, braiding her hair in its usual style, though she put little effort into it. Her mind was occupied by other, more pressing matters - Odd's disappearance, and Mia's capture.

She paused for a moment, as her blue eyes trailed across the walls of her room, eventually coming to land on a portrait of her and Odd, and a small tear leaked from the corner of her eye.

Wiping the tear from her cheek, she stood up, and lazily waved her hand, so that a dress materialised on her body. It was a simple dress, shapeless and plain, representing her mood.

Sadly, she stood up again, and made her way over to her mirror, glancing at herself. Turning to the side, she focused on her stomach, and ran her hand over it, frowning, as she noticed the way the small curve was beginning to be quite noticeable. Waving her hand, she loosened the dress so that it was slightly more flowing, concealing the tiny bump that was growing larger with each passing day.

Elsa sighed, as she placed her head in her hands and tried to stop her legs from shaking. She hadn't been expecting this, and certainly wasn't prepared - especially now that Odd was missing, and Mia was gone.

_Oh, God,_ She thought to herself, and her spirits plummeted even more. _I can't even tell her. It'd destroy her, what with Mia..._

Elsa paused for a moment, and then collapsed on the floor in a heap, sobbing wildly, rocking back and forth. She was confused, her thoughts rocketing wildly, out of control, in her brain, leaving her feeling stressed, confused, scared, and sad all at once.

A knock sounded on the door, and Anna's sad, quiet voice came floating through the door.

"Elsa?" She asked, "I know you're in there - please come out. Kristoff's gone out to look for Odd, and I'm feeling lonely."

Elsa sat up, but made no attempt to move over to the door.

"Elsa? Please, just let me in..." Anna paused for a moment, to take a breath, and Elsa knew just what was coming next. "_We only have each other, it's just you and me... What are we gonna do?_"

Elsa heard the slight thud of Anna's head gently resting upon the door. "Please..."

The Queen took a deep breath, and stood up slowly. She carefully made her way over to the door, and rested her palm on the door handle, feeling it freeze up under her grip.

_Come on, Elsa. _She thought to herself. _It's only Anna. _

She paused, hanging her head.

_That's the problem. It's Anna._

Taking one final, deep breath, she turned the handle, and pulled the door open quickly before she could think twice about it. Anna stared at her, and frowned.

"Are you okay, Elsa?" She said, as her eyes lingered over Elsa's red eyes and blotchy cheeks. "Have you been crying?"

Elsa tried to smile, pretty certain that she had failed to do so convincingly. Anna's reaction proved her suspicions.

"Don't try to hide things from me, Elsa." She said, her voice a whisper. "You know how badly that's been before. You can trust me, you know."

Elsa sighed. "I'm fine, Anna. I just don't want to hurt you."

"So, you're not fine." Anna shot back, and Elsa was slightly shocked for a moment at how perceptive her sister was being. She paused, not quite sure what to say, and Anna frowned, as she looked over the Queen's shoulder and noticed the room behind her.

"Oh, Elsa..." She whispered, as she witnessed the snowflakes, hanging suspended in midair, and the completely frozen walls. Elsa quickly noticed what her sister was looking at, and murmured under her breath in fear, as she stepped backwards, a little worried.

Anna placed her hand on her sister's shoulder, and reached behind her to close Elsa's door. "Come on," She said gently, and her hand made its way down to her sister's, locking their fingers together, as she squeezed gently, reassuringly. "Let's get a hot chocolate, and then we need to talk. Okay?"

Elsa nodded slightly, and she let go of her sister's hand as she slowly followed her down the corridors, to one of Anna's favourite rooms; the large, comfortable lounge, which, at this time in the morning, was always bright from the sunlight.

The sisters sat down on one of the large, plush sofas, and Anna looked directly at her sibling.

"Elsa, please, tell me. What is it?" She said, softly, although her eyes were shining with tears. She had lost her daughter, and she was scared to lose her sister, as well. "You know you can tell me anything?"

Elsa looked at Anna directly, and shook her head as she looked down, mumbling under her breath. The Princess frowned.

"Elsa?" She asked, and her sister looked up at her, as her fingers gently touched her stomach, an act which Anna seemed to miss.

"It doesn't matter, Anna..." She whispered, and Anna frowned, before glaring at her, angrily. "Please... I'll tell you when the time is right. And the time isn't right now."

Anna folded her arms. "You can't keep everything to yourself, Elsa. You don't have to keep your distance-"

"Shut up! Shut up!" She yelled, her eyes widening slightly at the outburst, and she lowered her voice slightly, in more control of herself. "Please, just... leave me be."

There was a slightly awkward silence, as Elsa looked away from her sister, and her hands came to rest in her lap, before she stood up slowly, patting down her dress gently.

"Excuse me," She said, quietly. "I need to go to the bathroom."

Anna nodded slightly, in a somber mood, upset by the fact that her sister didn't seem to trust her, that she would not reveal her secret, and at her sudden outburst. She watched as Elsa left the room, and the gears in her head began to turn, as things began to finally begin to fit together in her mind.

* * *

After she'd relieved herself, Elsa was quick to decide that she couldn't return to Anna. Not just yet. She couldn't deal with all of the Princess' questions, not until Mia had been found - she knew it would sadden Anna to know the truth, although it was obvious that it wouldn't be long until she couldn't hide it anyway.

Taking a detour, Elsa made her way out to the the stables, where she found her newest gelding waiting patiently in his stall.

"Hey, Boy." The Queen greeted gently, as she stroked his nose softly, murmuring to him quietly. Retrieving her saddle, she quickly tacked him up, before leading him outside and jumping on.

"Let's go, Vin." She said, patting the bay's neck as she gently squeezed her heels into his side, encouraging him into a trot. Vin had a beautiful, smooth, flowing gait, meaning that, sat side-saddle as she was, the horse's movements were not too bouncy to be uncomfortable.

She knew she was being hypocritical, as she headed off towards the forests, but she needed to try and help Kristoff find Odd. He deserved to know the truth, after all, and she needed to tell someone, to get it off of her shoulders. She could see Odd being a little upset, perhaps even angry, maybe, but at least he'd react better than her sister would.

She took a deep breath, as she came to the end of the deserted village streets; people were still scared from the attack a week previously, and mostly tried to stay inside if they could afford to. She paused for a moment, and then kicked Vin on into a canter.

"Come on, Boy." She said, "Let's find Odd, and then we can go home."

* * *

"They captured the young Princess, you say?" Hans said, confirming, and Alec nodded slowly. The younger grinned evilly, happily. "How convenient. And, I am right in the fact that the girl has the same powers as her aunt, am I not?"

Alec nodded again. "You are indeed, Hans." He paused, thinking. "I'm not sure how true they are, but I've also heard rumours that she may have other powers, too."

This new information seemed to interest Hans. "That's good to hear," He commented, as he reached for his glass of water. "The girl could be useful, if only we can convince her to work on our side. The question is... how can you convince a two year old to go against her family?"

Alec paused, but then grinned. "The report from the soldiers reported that they've been beating the girl, so that she's too weak to use her powers against them. Supposedly she's very powerful - gloves may not be able to contain her magic for long, so they need to keep her weakened just in case."

Hans looked slightly annoyed as his brother rambled on. "What are you getting at, Brother?" He snapped, scowling.

"Patience." Alec snapped back, hotly. "Supposedly, some of the guards have over heard the child muttering to herself, and it sounds like she's confused. She thinks she's being punished for something by her parents, although she doesn't know what she's done wrong."

Hans grinned again. "Perfect." He said, "Send an order back to the soldiers who are keeping her, and tell them to keep doing exactly what they are now, but don't hurt her too much - we need the girl alive, but we also need her submissive for my plans concerning her to work out. Make sure to point out that the kid's only two - it won't take much to break her in, so to speak, but there will be a very fine line between doing so, and pushing her over the edge."

His cold eyes rested on his brother's. "That is essential. If it goes wrong, it'll be up to you to find a way to make up for it."

Alec cringed at the deeper meaning of those words; if Mia was damaged beyond repair, he would be the one who would have to pay the price.

He nodded to his brother, before leaving the room. Though he was older than Hans, the latter was ridiculously brilliant when it came to controlling people. Indeed, Alec knew he was but the youngest Prince's messenger, and though he was the one with freedom, not confined to a single room, as Hans was, he was still trapped. He couldn't do anything wrong - after all, even locked up as he was, the youngest Prince had unbelievable power, and Alec was simply a tool.

He was disposable, in his brother's eyes, and even if Alec was acting as if he was the one with the great plan for revenge, it was always Hans who held the keys for change. It wouldn't take much for him to find a new puppet, and when he did, Alec would be thrown away.

He knew what that meant.

Dead.

He swallowed, as he rushed off to write the letter to send to the soldiers. He couldn't afford to get it wrong, that was for sure.

* * *

"Odd!" Elsa yelled, her voice barely sounding over the strong wind that was blowing that morning. She slowed Vin down as he began to go a little faster, cantering a little too quickly for comfort, and she scanned the forest for any sign of movement. "Odd! I'm sorry! Please, come back!"

Still, there was no sign of him anywhere, and a sob escaped her lips. "I need you..."

She slowed Vin down again to a trot, as she splashed through the cold water of a river, the droplets flying against her skin and refreshing her, but her heart was heavy as she searched.

As she passed a large, decayed tree, Vin began to snort nervously, and Elsa hopped off quickly, trying to find out what was wrong.

"Hey, hey," She said, soothingly. "What is it, Boy?"

Vin snorted, as he looked towards the tree, and Elsa walked around it, puzzled, holding tightly to the horse's reigns so that he wouldn't run away, and she gasped when she saw a massive hole in the base of the tree. It wasn't the hole she was reacting to, however, but rather the small, one-armed child laying in it, seemingly asleep, but it didn't take Elsa long to notice the pale colour of his skin.

"Oh, my..." She breathed, and she quickly grabbed the boy, showing him to Vin quickly so as to reassure him that the child was not a danger, and then she climbed back on, turning back to Arendelle and kicking Vin on.

Whether it was her motherly instincts kicking in, or simply the fact that the child was so small and helpless, Elsa knew she could not let the boy die. He was icy cold, and the Queen had no doubt that the cold November weather had chilled the boy to the bone. He was thin, too, and he'd clearly not eaten in a long time.

Though she was still desperate to find Odd, she knew she had to help Arne first. He'd die if she didn't.

And she'd never be able to live with herself if that happened.

* * *

**Right, first, to answer a couple of guest reviews:**

**unicorns: ****I'm fourteen, although I'll be fifteen in two weeks.**

** : Thanks for the review, it made me happy to read. And of course you can use the idea of them being cousins, and Rapunzel regaining her powers. **

**Now, about the chapter. I was actually writing this while watching the Badminton Horse Trials (I have horses myself, so it's nice to watch for me, and it inspires me to try out more stuff when I do go riding). Funnily enough, I actually got quite a lot of my inspiration for this chapter from watching it, as well as an ****idea for later on in the story, or for another book in the 'mini-series', as it seems to be, now.**

**What do you guys think? I'm not sure where we are with this story yet, probably about 1/2 way or so now, but would you like a sequel when it's finished, or would that be dragging it out too long?**

**I still didn't get many reviews last chapter, so hopefully this chapter will be different. I managed to write it in just two days, so hopefully I'll be able to update the next chapter sooner!**


	16. Chapter 16 - dedicated to blackknght

**_"Odd!" Elsa yelled, her voice barely sounding over the strong wind that was blowing that morning. She slowed Vin down as he began to go a little faster, cantering a little too quickly for comfort, and she scanned the forest for any sign of movement. "Odd! I'm sorry! Please, come back!"_**

**_Still, there was no sign of him anywhere, and a sob escaped her lips. "I need you..."_**

**_She slowed Vin down again to a trot, as she splashed through the cold water of a river, the droplets flying against her skin and refreshing her, but her heart was heavy as she searched._**

**_As she passed a large, decayed tree, Vin began to snort nervously, and Elsa hopped off quickly, trying to find out what was wrong._**

**_"Hey, hey," She said, soothingly. "What is it, Boy?"_**

**_Vin snorted, as he looked towards the tree, and Elsa walked around it, puzzled, holding tightly to the horse's reigns so that he wouldn't run away, and she gasped when she saw a massive hole in the base of the tree. It wasn't the hole she was reacting to, however, but rather the small, one-armed child laying in it, seemingly asleep, but it didn't take Elsa long to notice the pale colour of his skin._**

**_"Oh, my..." She breathed, and she quickly grabbed the boy, showing him to Vin quickly so as to reassure him that the child was not a danger, and then she climbed back on, turning back to Arendelle and kicking Vin on._**

**_Whether it was her motherly instincts kicking in, or simply the fact that the child was so small and helpless, Elsa knew she could not let the boy die. He was icy cold, and the Queen had no doubt that the cold November weather had chilled the boy to the bone. He was thin, too, and he'd clearly not eaten in a long time._**

**_Though she was still desperate to find Odd, she knew she had to help Arne first. He'd die if she didn't._**

**_And she'd never be able to live with herself if that happened._**

* * *

"How is he?" Anna asked quietly, as she looked over at Arne, laying in one of the spare beds. He was much too small for it, and it almost looked like he'd soon sink into the mattress and disappear forever.

"The doctor said he'll be okay, but he's so thin, and we need to try and get him to eat something, which won't be easy when he's unconscious. Ida is going to bring up a hot bowl of soup, which he should swallow by reflex, hopefully, but he needs something more filling really. Soup is, after all, quite watery, so it won't really make him put on any weight. Still, I think it's the best we can do until he wakes up."

Anna considered this. "In theory, if we feed him a lot of soup, it should help, right?" Elsa shook her head.

"We can't even give him very much. He can't have eaten in quite a while, at least three or four days, I'd wager, if not more, meaning that his stomach will have shrunk, and he won't be able to actually eat much. If we feed him too much, that'll be just as bad."

Anna sighed. "I hope he gets well soon. It makes me sad to see him like this."

"Me too," Elsa agreed sadly, as she turned around to give the boy some privacy while he recovered.

"Elsa?" Anna said quietly, as she followed her sister out of the room. "You don't suppose that Arne might know anything about what happened to Mia, do you?"

Elsa looked unsure. "I don't know, Anna. He might, but I didn't see him... I don't know if he was there, and I don't really see how he could know anything if he wasn't."

Anna looked down, her shoulders falling, and Elsa felt a pang of sorrow flow through her veins. "Hey, hey! That doesn't mean he definitely doesn't know anything!" She reassured. "Just... please don't get your hopes up too high. I'd hate to see you getting hurt."

Anna shook her head. "I've already lost one of the most important people in my life. I'm already hurt; I don't think a little more pain will affect me all that much."

"Oh, Anna..." Elsa said, as she pulled her sister into a hug, and Anna sighed into the embrace, before stiffening for a moment, and drawing back.

"Elsa..." She said, and she gently placed her hand on her sister's stomach. Hey eyes were large and sad, and Elsa could swear she even saw the slightest amount of jealousy in them, and she quickly knew where this was going. Hastily, she took a step back, and tried to loosen her dress, but the damage was done.

"You're pregnant, aren't you?" Anna said, in a small, quiet voice, and Elsa's eyes darted everywhere, except for meeting her sister's. Her silence was enough of an answer for the Princess.

"Anna-" Elsa said, but the girl had turned away, and the Queen could hear her small, quiet sobs.

"Excuse me," She whispered, and then ran off in the opposite direction. Elsa stood, dumbfounded, and she buried her head in her hands. She wanted to run after her younger sister, wanted to try and offer her some sort of comfort, but really, how could she, when she, herself, was the reason Anna was so distressed.

Why was everything so confusing?

* * *

"Perfect," An old woman's sharp voice cracked through the air, slicing it like a whip. "Except for one thing..."

She paused for a moment, and walked over to the man. "The scars." She said, her voice now quiet, giving her a darker, more intimidating quality.

The man hissed, as the woman slashed the knife down the side of his face, across his eye, down to the corner of his mouth. He steeled himself as she struck again, and he made no sound as the blade sliced cleanly through his flesh. He clenched his fists for the last attack, and tightened his lips and eyes as he felt the thick, dark red blood flow into the corner of them.

"There," the woman said, and the man glared at her with his green eyes, his chocolate-brown hair falling partially over his face and covering some of the wounds. "You know what has to be done. Go."

The man was shocked for a moment, but then nodded, wincing at the throbbing pain in his face. "Certainly." He snarled back, but the injury made it hard to speak, and his word had a rather jagged, unclean quality to it.

The man stood up and left, placing his hand to his face, drawing it back to see, and finding it covered with his own blood.

* * *

By the time night had fallen, the temperature outside had fallen significantly, and Elsa was relieved that she'd found Arne when she had. No doubt he'd have frozen in the cold November air during the night otherwise.

Sullenly, Elsa stared out of the window of her bedroom, gently rubbing her very slight baby-bump, as she looked out towards the forest. She needed Odd back, and her sister needed Kristoff to return even more.

Out of the corner of her eyes, Elsa noticed something moving, and glanced downwards to see the two men hurriedly racing through the villages, back towards the magnificent castle, which stood as a landmark in the black night sky. The Queen gasped, and smiled with relief, as she rushed to her sister's room.

"Anna!" She cried out, but there was no reply. "Anna... Please, I know you're upset, but Kristoff and Odd are coming back."

There was a slight, pregnant pause, and Elsa sighed.

"Kristoff will be sad if you aren't there to meet him."

The Queen heard a slight shuffling from beyond the door, and waited for a few seconds. "I'll be down in a few minutes," came Anna's quiet reply, and Elsa sighed, as she turned, heading down to meet up with her husband, and her brother-in-law.

* * *

The man groaned to himself slightly, as he cantered along on Brandy Shot's back, trying to ignore the throbbing pain of his cheek.

"I bet that twinges a bit, Odd." Kristoff commented, and the man had to hold back a growl of annoyance.

"Really? Aren't you smart!" He snapped, and Kristoff was shocked. Odd quickly tried to correct himself. "Sorry. The pain's getting to my head. Ruddy eagle..."

Kristoff didn't look convinced. "Are you sure it was an eagle? I've seen eagle injuries before, and generally, they are more... rough. That's virtually a straight line."

Odd looked slightly put off at Kristoff's comment, but he nodded anyway. "Definitely an eagle." He said, and then looked away stiffly, as he entered the castle grounds.

* * *

"Oh my gosh, you're back!" Elsa cried out, as she pushed the doors open and ran out into the courtyard. "I'm so sorry, I- What happened to your face?"

"An eagle slashed him." Kristoff answered, knowing that it pained Odd to speak. Elsa gasped at his words, and quickly rushed over to help her husband down, shielding him as Brandy Shot snorted, attempting to bite the already injured man.

"The cuts must scare him," Kristoff commented, "He's been acting strangely the whole way back here."

"That's strange..." Elsa said, as she took a step back from the horse when a stable hand caught him. "Well, we'd better get to the doctor, Odd. Those cuts are really deep."

"You don't say," Odd commented, and Elsa frowned at his tone of voice.

"Anna's waiting for you inside, Kristoff." She said, her voice without a tone, expressionless. Kristoff nodded, following Elsa and Odd into the towering castle, and none saw the sly little fox, sneaking silently in behind them, unnoticed.

* * *

**Okay, next chapter done. Sorry this one took longer to post than normal, but thi gas have been a bit he rice for me with my dofe and work experience. **

**I hope you enjoyed it, anyway! Please review, and remember, the best reviewer gets a chapter dedicated to them! I'll also try to mention all reviewers in the next chapter, so it's worth reviewing!**

**Also, just quickly, what do you guys think about the headcanon that Anna and Elsa's parents were actually Tarzan's parents? If you haven't heard about it, search 'Frozen Tarzan theory'. I wan't to know your thoughts on this, and maybe I'll include it in the story if it's a popular theory. If it's not, then I won't.**

**Alternatively, what about the headcanon where the ship Ariel saw was actually Anna and Elsa's parents ships? What do you think about this? (Search 'Frozen Little Mermaid theory' if you haven't heard about it). Again, if it's a popular theory, I'll possibly include it, and vice-versa. **

**I like these headcanons. You might have guessed. **

**See y'all around!**


	17. Chapter 17 - dedicated to A Foolish Fool

_**"Oh my gosh, you're back!" Elsa cried out, as she pushed the doors open and ran out into the courtyard. "I'm so sorry, I- What happened to your face?"**_

_**"An eagle slashed him." Kristoff answered, knowing that it pained Odd to speak. Elsa gasped at his words, and quickly rushed over to help her husband down, shielding him as Brandy Shot snorted, attempting to bite the already injured man.**_

_**"The cuts must scare him," Kristoff commented, "He's been acting strangely the whole way back here."**_

_**"That's strange..." Elsa said, as she took a step back from the horse when a stable hand caught him. "Well, we'd better get to the doctor, Odd. Those cuts are really deep."**_

_**"You don't say," Odd commented, and Elsa frowned at his tone of voice.**_

_**"Anna's waiting for you inside, Kristoff." She said, her voice without a tone, expressionless. Kristoff nodded, following Elsa and Odd into the towering castle, and none saw the sly little fox, sneaking silently in behind them, unnoticed.**_

* * *

"You say you got these wounds from an eagle?" The doctor asked, skeptically, and Odd nodded, flinching as the Medic applied aloe vera gel to the deep slashes across his face. "That is peculiar. I'm not an expert on bird anatomy, but I would have imagined that an eagle's talons would have left finer marks. In my experience, these look more like slashes from a sword, or a sharp knife."

Odd clenched his fists under the table, annoyed, but he kept a straight face as best as he could. His body relaxed as Elsa placed her hand on his thigh gently, and she smiled at him as the doctor prepared a needle Before him.

"Now, this is going To hurt, but please, try not to flinch too much, if you can help it. I need you to keep your face relaxed, whilst I stitch the wound closed, or else it may come undone."

Odd nodded, and closed his eyes gently as the doctor pinched the two pieces of skin together, and Elsa squeezed his hand as she felt him tense up, the needle piercing his skin and making beads of blood form from the hole.

Minutes passed, as the doctor carefully sewed up the gaping flesh, holding it together to promote its healing, and Elsa stroked her finger gently across the back of Odd's hand, the soft physical contact reassuring him. He was not completely used to such tenderness, and it was nice, soothing, even.

Finally, the doctor finished the last stitches, and Odd sighed as the medic placed the sharp metal needle down upon the table. His head was stinging painfully, and he could feel the droplets of blood trickling down the contours of his face, before they were genot ly dabbed away by Elsa.

"Now, Odd." The doctor said, "I need you to put as little pressure on the stitches as possible, or they will break and your wounds will heal badly. I expect you may have scars later on, but if you are careful, you'll still have complete use of your face. Except, perhaps, your right eye... I'm not sure if you will be able to open it after this ordeal or not. We will have to wait and see."

Odd shrugged. "I'll live." He muttered, "And I'm not bothered by scars. I've already got scars anyway... What's a few more?" His finger gently touched the stitches, and his good eye widened. "I mean..."

The doctor quickly held up his hand. "Please, don't talk, unless you really must. It may tear out the stitches. I'm sorry - give it a week, and then we'll see how you are. It may be that you can talk a little then, but please try not to in the mean time. You understand, I'm sure, the importance of this."

Odd nodded, his good eye sad, and he looked down, grumpily. Elsa placed her hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you, Doctor." She said, "I'll make sure he is good."

The medic smiled knowingly at Elsa's motherly tone, as she shepherded her husband out of the room, taking him to the lounge to get comfortable. He chuckled as he began to tidy up the theatre, and he was glad she had found someone special, at last.

_She deserves him_, he thought to himself. _But I think she'd be lost without him, too. He's a good man, but he's brave too - it may be bad that Elsa is so close to him, because bravery is arrogance, and arrogance hurts._

Turning around, the doctor stared at the door the pair had just left. _Don't hurt her, Odd. She needs someone she can trust right now._

* * *

"Okay... We need to talk." Elsa said, as she sat down stiffly upon the soft mattress of her and Odd's king sized bed. The Prince nodded, and followed her lead, sitting down without a fuss, as he gently touched his new stitches, trying not to wince as he explored the strange, new texture of his face.

"What is it, Elsa?" He asked, through very finely opened lips, barely moving them at all; he was cautious not to break the stitches, but he needed to speak also.

Elsa sighed, as she ran her hand across her hair, smoothing back the loose locks of her plait. "Well, here's the thing.. Oh, how do I say this..?" She sighed, thinking, and Odd smiled gently at her, although Elsa could see that it was a forced gesture when she looked into his eyes. _He must still be in pain, _She thought silently to herself, _Hopefully the news will take his mind off it._

She smiled to herself, as a thought occurred to her, and she looked at Odd with a new found confidence. "Give me your hand," She said, and Odd complied, placing his paw upturned in Elsa's own. "Now close your eyes." Once again, the Prince obeyed, and Elsa took a breath in.

Hovering her hand over Odd's, she closed her eyes also, and concentrated on using her powers, forming a small gift in her husband's palm.

"Now, open your eyes." She whispered, and Odd did as he was told, frowning at the objects in his palm.

"Two baby boots?" He said, questioningly. "What are these for?" Odd looked back at the little blue boots in his hand, turning the carefully crafted items over in his palm, studying them closely. "Are these for Mia? Has she been found?"

Elsa frowned slightly at Odd, puzzled by the tone of his voice - the man had always been close to the young princess, but he didn't seem all that excited at the prospect of Mia's retrieval. Still, that wasn't the point of giving Odd the boots.

"No, Odd. They haven't found Mia yet, but we have most of the army out searching for her. Still... Try again."

Odd looked down at the little, blue boots, and then they slipped from his palm, as his eyes widened and he looked at Elsa with a surprised expression.

"Are you... pregnant?" He said, quietly, and Elsa nodded slowly, the tone of his voice making her nervous again.

"What... what do you think?" She asked softly, and Odd looked at her unsurely, his eyes appearing almost to be annoyed, as if the news had interfered with some sort of plan of his. A few seconds passed, however, and then his face broke out into a smile, and he pulled Elsa into a strong hug.

"I'm going to be a father," He whispered into her ear, a little stiffly, and the words slurred together slightly as he could not open his mouth wide enough to speak properly. "We're going to be a proper family."

Elsa smiled, as she buried her head in Odd's shoulder happily, and he wrapped his muscular arms around her body. He closed his eyes, and the corners of his mouth curved up slightly.

_He seems stronger than usual, _Elsa thought to herself. _He must have faced quite a lot during the day he was away. _She sighed to herself, happily. _He'll make a great __father to our child..._

She leaned in a little closer to Odd's chest for security, as negative thoughts began to plague her mind. _But what about me? I'm scared I won't be a good mother..._

Slowly, her hand trailed across to the slight bump of her stomach. _I couldn't even protect my niece... I don't know if I can __do this..._

Slowly, Elsa's eyes closed shut, and Odd's hands clasped her shoulders, as he sighed slightly. Standing up, he lay his sleeping wife down upon the bed, and then walked over to the other side of the room, burying his head in his hands, groaning.

_Oh, god._ He thought to himself,_ Why does she have to be pregnant? No doubt that it will only work against us..._

For the rest of the evening, neither person moved in the room, except for the tiny child within Elsa, which squirmed and kicked, distressed.

* * *

Mia squeezed her eyes shut tightly, as she crawled across the cold stone floor, towards the wooden door, which separated her from the rest of the world.

Though she could not count, she knew she'd been trapped here for quite a while, now, but she had no means of knowing the exact length of her punishment. In truth, she had been locked up for ten days now, but to her, it felt like an entire lifetime of pain.

She yelped quietly as her bruised knee came to rest upon a sharp rock, but she continued on as the tears leaked from her eyes, dribbling down her cheeks, a slim stream of sorrow.

Mia gasped as the door handle began to creak open, and she quickly scrambled back to her original position, placing her hands back in the chains, making it appear as if she'd never gotten away from the restraints.

A guard stepped into the room, two small dog bowls in his hands.

"Hello, Child." He spat out, as he set the metal down on the cold, hard floor, just a few metres ahead of her. Mia could feel her mouth watering at the prospect of a meal, and drink. "Food. Water. I bet you're getting desperate now, huh?" He chuckled, as he walked over and tied a dog collar around her neck, fittingly, so that she could not escape.

Unclipping her hand restraints, the gloves still tightly tied on, he grinned. "Go ahead." He said, nodding to the bowls, and Mia frowned at him, suspicious, before the need to feed and drink overtook her, and she began scrambling towards the precious dishes waiting, teasingly, before her.

A sharp boot connected with her side, and the small girl was sent hurtling to the floor. Though she had only been crawling before, too weak to do much else, she hit the ground with a loud thud, her increasingly brittle, calcium deprived bones shuddering from the impact, and she cried out in pain, her scream high pitched, capable of slicing through the hearts of any person capable of compassion.

Laying on the ground, Mia opened her tear filled blue eyes shakily, and watched the man before her, terrified, as he circled her like a hawk, waiting for her next move, ready to strike when she did.

The Princess was but two years old; she didn't know why the man had knocked her over. Had she done something wrong? Had she moved too quickly, had she been too eager for something so essential? Were her actions too primitive for a Princess?

Her body convulsed again, with tears that could not be brought forth, as she weakly began to inch towards the bowls again, her heart set on the food before her. The pangs from her stomach drove her forward, the dry, cracked skin of her lips forcing her to keep moving.

Another scream cut through the still, cold air inside her cave prison, as a whip slashed across the skin of her back, the red stain spreading quickly across her soft back like a swarm of angry ants, burning, not stopping.

The whip cracked just above her back, and Mia yelped in fear, as she rushed forward, and tripped, crashing her nose against the ground, causing her to cry out once again in pain. The man chuckled darkly, as he slapped the red-raw skin of her upper back, hard, leaving the young Princess gasping, as she fell to the ground, her energy completely spent.

She turned her head to look at the man, her blood-shot eyes pleading with him, but the Guard just snarled, and pushed her once again. The heel of his boot dug into her side, and the force made her roll at least a metre, coming to a rest in an exhausted heap, whimpering, unable to do anything else. She buried her head under her hands, trying to hide away from the world, as she waited for the next blow.

After a few moments of relief, Mia sneaked a glance at the man, who had packed away his whip, and a small sigh of relief escaped her cracked lips. She could feel the blood from her nose dribbling into her mouth, and she knew she looked terrible.

"Food. Water. I bet you're desperate now, huh?" The man repeated, before turning away and walking to the door, ten metres away. "_Go ahead._"

The words were a challenge, and Mia knew it; the man was daring her to try again, but the girl had no wish to be beaten again, and she just lay, murmuring and whimpering, in a heap, not responding. The man huffed, and left the room, slamming the door with such force that small pebbles fell from the damp, algae-covered ceiling of the cave.

Slowly, Mia's eyes trailed to the two bowls, and heaving herself the few metres to the nourishment, she greedily dipped her head right in the water, drinking massive gulps of the liquid, making herself choke as she did. The water was old, and still, and had a thin film covering the top, and the blood flowing from her nose stained it pink, but it was truly amazing, the sweetest thing she'd tasted in days.

Licking the bowl dry, Mia gasped for air as she coughed up water that had gone down the wrong way, and quickly turned to the other bowl. There was a lot less in the second dish, just a few spoonfuls of plain, boiled beans, completely tasteless of flavour, and as the princess shovelled them into her mouth, all moisture was lost by the dry food. Either way, the girl, usually used to having only the very best, due to her royal heritage and all, did not mutter a single complaint, as she hungrily ate every last bit of her almost pointless meal, and she sighed as she chewed, swallowing much too quickly, choking a few times, but she was not deterred, and she moaned when it was all gone.

Completely engulfed in her food, Mia did not hear the creaking door opening, and she screamed when she looked up to see another guard, standing menacingly in the doorway, a whip held in his hand.

"So, you're the little Princess," He said, his voice devilishly sharp, as he walked over, and slashed the poor girl, who cried out in pain, once again. "This will be fun."

* * *

**I'm so sorry it took me so long to post this chapter - I had work experience last week and then my Duke of Edinburgh expedition at the weekend, so I've been pretty busy. Hopefully I'll be able to get back on track soon!**

**Anyway, please review! I love getting reviews, and I'll be happy to return reviews if you ask! **

**-SG**


	18. Chapter 18 - dedicated to TailsDoll13

_**Slowly, Mia's eyes trailed to the two bowls, and heaving herself the few metres to the nourishment, she greedily dipped her head right in the water, drinking massive gulps of the liquid, making herself choke as she did. The water was old, and still, and had a thin film covering the top, and the blood flowing from her nose stained it pink, but it was truly amazing, the sweetest thing she'd tasted in days.**_

_**Licking the bowl dry, Mia gasped for air as she coughed up water that had gone down the wrong way, and quickly turned to the other bowl. There was a lot less in the second dish, just a few spoonfuls of plain, boiled beans, completely tasteless of flavour, and as the princess shovelled them into her mouth, all moisture was lost by the dry food. Either way, the girl, usually used to having only the very best, due to her royal heritage and all, did not mutter a single complaint, as she hungrily ate every last bit of her almost pointless meal, and she sighed as she chewed, swallowing much too quickly, choking a few times, but she was not deterred, and she moaned when it was all gone.**_

_**Completely engulfed in her food, Mia did not hear the creaking door opening, and she screamed when she looked up to see another guard, standing menacingly in the doorway, a whip held in his hand.**_

_**"So, you're the little Princess," He said, his voice devilishly sharp, as he walked over, and slashed the poor girl, who cried out in pain, once again. "This will be fun."**_

* * *

"I won't lie, I wasn't expecting this news so quickly... Eventually, yes, but I must say, it comes as quite a shock." Hans' voice was cold and sharp, "Indeed, it throws off some of the gears of ours plans... I'm afraid that this development may mean we have to hurry things along."

Alec frowned, folding his arms, gently rubbing the bruise on his arm. "I don't see how Queen Elsa's pregnancy affects the plans so much." He commented, "Would you care to enlighten me?"

The younger prince rolled his eyes, mockingly. "I would have thought it would have been obvious, Brother." He teased, but there was no happiness or light-hearted tones in his voice.

"If the Queen is pregnant, then it will be, or at least, could potentially be, harder to get her to go and help her cousin, Queen Rapunzel, in Corona, when we launch our attack on them. I'm certain she'd want to try and protect her family, but if she _is_ with child, there will be a limit as to what she can do, not to mention her sister, that Brat, Princess Anna, would definitely have a few things to say. She's very protective of Elsa, and in her condition, she will be even more so. And then there's the new Prince, Odd, too, who would never let her leave if she was too close to having her baby. Give it a few months, and she will be forced to return to her own kingdom to give birth to the child, and then our plans are ruined."

Alec seemed to understand where Hans was coming from, as he nodded his comprehension.

"Clearly, we'll have to try and speed things up. It will be a risk, but it's one we have to take; it's try it now, or not at all."

Hans grinned, as he stood up. "So, what are you going to tell our brothers?" He said, and Alec paused for a second, considering his answer, not keen on giving a wrong response.

"I'll tell them..." He took a deep breath. "I'll tell them we need to attack Corona now."

Hans smiled, triumphantly. "And..."

Alec seemed to almost sigh with relief. "And it's also time we rescue the baby Princess." He turned to leave, but Hans coughed a couple of times.

"What other news is there for me, Alec?" He demanded, and the said Prince seemed to almost shrink under his brother's cold tone.

"There is a woman, who would like to speak with you, Brother." He said, and Hans raised his eyebrows.

"What purpose would she serve coming here, to see me?" He snapped, and Alec looked around nervously.

"I believe she is interested in... joining our cause." Alec said, cautiously. "If I am not mistaken, I think she is under the impression that she would be useful to us."

Hans looked skeptical, but he nodded anyway, and his brother left hurriedly to get the woman in question. The remaining Prince sat, feeling a little awkward, in his seat by the fireplace, until the two returned to the room. Alec quickly hurried back out, leaving the man and woman in the room together.

"I'm waiting." Hans snapped, after just a few seconds of silence, and the woman glared at him, frustrated. "What's your pitch."

Her cold, icy blue eyes glinted in the fire light, giving them an eerie reflection, and her blonde hair seemed to almost glow in the flickering light of the flames. "I am Ayla." She said, simply. "I am interested in the events of recent concerning you, and the kingdom of Arendelle. I know what you are planning."

Hans snarled. "Did my brother tell you this information?" He growled, and the woman laughed.

"No," She said, "But I have my sources. Anyway, I am looking to join one side of the battle. The question is, which side will have me?"

"And what makes you so special?" Hans glared at her, frustrated that such a simple woman was wasting his precious planning time. She simply grinned.

"You may have heard of my brother, Karleif. He was one of the sorcerers who tried to kill Queen Elsa and her family." This news sparked some interest in Hans, and he sat up a little straighter. "I was never included in the plans, but I did manage to sneak some magic of my own."

She twiddled her fingers, as she continued. "I have great power, myself, for unlike my mother and brother, I know how to wield it properly. However, and I'm sure you can relate! I'm not content with being a nobody. I need more magic to become a somebody, and that magic, I can get from Queen Elsa's family. Then, you need them dead to gain control of their kingdom. Either way, we want the same fate for them, and we both want power. I'd say we're rather similar."

Hans frowned slightly. "How can I trust your claims are true? How do I know you won't turn on me? If you have magic already, then it is quite possible that you would be a spy."

Ayla smiled, her white teeth flashing brightly. "You are already a Prince of royal blood, yet you still want to be king. I'd say our situations are rather similar."

Hans looked impressed at this, and he smiled, also. "What are the extent of your abilities. When you say magic, what do you mean, exactly."

Ayla smiled, and Hans yelped quietly in shock as the arms of the arm chair he was sat on began to move, and little fingers grew off of it, changing into material snakes which wrapped tightly around his body and choked him of air. He gasped a little, before they fell limp, and retracted back into the couch.

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Hans said, grinning, and the pair shook hands.

"The pleasure's all mine."

* * *

**Okay, so this one was short, but it was necessary. I'm looking to post the next chapter in two days, but if I don't get the normal amount of reviews or more then I'll probably push it back.**

**Well, I got multiple reviews saying I was great at writing horror / torture / etc. Oh, God - I'm worrying myself now! :)**

**Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter. I've been in quite a positive mood all today (it's my fifteenth birthday, yay) so it was easier to write this, and I couldn't resist adding Ayla into it. **

**So, please leave a review, and if you have your own frozen stories which you'd like me to review, just ask!**

**-SG**


	19. Chapter 19 - dedicated to Crona4

**_Hans frowned slightly. "How can I trust your claims are true? How do I know you won't turn on me? If you have magic already, then it is quite possible that you would be a spy."_**

**_Ayla smiled, her white teeth flashing brightly. "You are already a Prince of royal blood, yet you still want to be king. I'd say our situations are rather similar."_**

**_Hans looked impressed at this, and he smiled, also. "What are the extent of your abilities. When you say magic, what do you mean, exactly."_**

**_Ayla smiled, and Hans yelped quietly in shock as the arms of the arm chair he was sat on began to move, and little fingers grew off of it, changing into material snakes which wrapped tightly around his body and choked him of air. He gasped a little, before they fell limp, and retracted back into the couch._**

**_"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." Hans said, grinning, and the pair shook hands._**

**_"The pleasure's all mine."_**

* * *

A pair of large, bright green eyes glinted in the cold blackness, shining with hatred, malice and a sick, twisted, dastardly pleasure, as the sharp sound of a sword being unsheathed from it's holster echoed around the dark cave of nothingness. The silver sliced through the scene, a blur as it fell, and the bright white of teeth could just be made out through the shadows.

Mia gasped, as she jumped awake, sweating despite the chilly, still air inside the cave, and she sobbed as she deeply heaved air into her lungs, each breath stinging her bruised body, and she only cried more. The bright, green eyes in her dream had been so real, the emotion in them so convincing, she had truly been terrified of what the man had been planning to do.

Eventually, her breaths calmed, and despite the pain that wracked her body with each breath, she quickly fell back to sleep. She'd been living in constant pain for a month now, and though the scars of the beatings still stung, she'd grown so used to much more intense misery, meaning that the torturous aching was almost a relief.

The door creaked, and Mia screamed as she saw the shape of a man come into the dim light, anticipating yet more beating. She quickly tried to scurry back against the wall, as far away from the man as possible, and she held her breath, hoping desperately that she would blend into the wall, invisible.

Sadly, her powers weren't quite so willing to hide, and the gloves, glued to the skin of her wrist, began to glow as her magic started acting up.

"Shush..." The man whispered. "Be quiet, it's okay. I'm here to rescue you. I promise I wont hurt you."

Mia whimpered as the man came closer, but she let out a breath when the man undid her handcuffs. Gently, he bent down to pick her up, and the warmth of his skin was comforting, even if the cold did not bother her, although something seemed off about him, and she pushed herself away, untrusting.

The man bent down, and gently pulled out a knife, making the girl whimper in fear, but she began to feel more confident as the blade cut off the fabric on her hands, leaving just a little of the material which was still stuck to her skin. The princess smiled slightly, as she flexed her fingers and felt the soft skin of her hands, unscathed from the torture she'd been through.

The man chuckled as the girl made a few snowflakes, happily, but then he hushed her, reminding the girl that they needed to be quiet. Mia nodded, and, making sure to walk a few safe metres away from the man, she followed him to the door.

"Come on, Hans." A man's voice said, and Mia screamed in shock, spinning in the direction the voice had come from, as a massive icicle shot from the ground. There came a load groan, then a thud as the body fell to the floor, and Mia could feel something hot and sticky touching her toes.

She gasped as she looked down, making an ice light, seeing a pool of thick blood spreading the three metres between the girl and the injured man, who was sat on the floor, the icicle through his body. Hans gasped.

"Brother!" He cried, and rushed over to the man, but Alec's eyes had already began to flutter weakly. He groaned, as he rocked back and forth, and the blood poured from his wound, until finally, his body convulsed once, twice, three times, and then, stilled.

Mia gasped, and she rushed backwards, scared as ice spread across the floor rapidly, and Hans gasped, too. Quickly, he grabbed her wrist, and pulled the child to the door.

"Hurry, Princess." He whispered, "We must get out before they find us!"

Mia whimpered, and began to cry as the man pulled her along, forcing her to run on her painful legs, and he quickly noticed his mistake, picking up the child as he ran through the corridors of the cave. The princess cried, scared of the close physical contact, and she tried to squirm away, but Hans held tight to her, not willing to let her get away.

"You'll have to close your eyes and hold your breath." He instructed, and the commanding tone of his voice scared Mia even more, as the man began to descend down the slope, slipping as the floor grew wetter, and the Princess screamed, terrified, and Hans snarled as he felt his shoulders freeze up, but he kept going.

Mia squinted her eyes open after a while, her body still squirming wildly to get away, and she noticed the water was quickly rising up, and the lower half of Hans' body was submerged. She screamed again as she felt the icy liquid nipping her toes, and she was reminded of drowning once again, as the Prince holding her dived under. She gasped quickly to get a breath, and she squeezed her eyes shut until she felt herself re-emerge above the water.

Spluttering, she coughed as she felt Hans swimming smoothly through the water, and she gasped with relief as she felt him push her into a small, wooden rowing boat, where a guard was sat, holding the oars. He frowned as Hans climbed in too.

"_Den knægt dræbte min bror med en af hendes istapper. Alligevel er vi nødt til at gå. Hun har skreg og græd, og jeg frygter, vi kan blive opdaget, hvis vi ikke forlade hurtigt._" Hans said, speaking in his natural tongue, Danish, and the guard nodded, quickly rowing off, to the south.

Mia scuttled away to the rear of the boat, away from the two men, shaking in fear, her legs drawn up to her chest. Eventually, she found the courage to speak.

"Where are we going?" She whispered quietly, refusing to make eye contact with Hans as she said it, her voice scratchy from screaming, crying, and otherwise lack of use.

The Prince looked almost shocked at the girl actually speaking, but he quickly regained his composure. "We are going to my home," He said, his voice silky smooth, "We are saving you from your parents. They sent you to that horrid place, and we don't want to see you hurt. They are cruel people."

Mia was not completely convinced, but she didn't say anything. If she was older, she would have considered how the men knew of her location, and what was happening to her, but she was much too young to even think about it. Instead, she tried to weight up both sides in her mind. Her Mother, Father, Aunt and Uncle all seemed so kind, seemed to love her so very dearly, but then, if what Hans said was true, then they were cold-hearted and completely cruel. Whatever she'd done wrong - something she still could not work out - surely did not deserve the harsh punishment she'd received.

She closed her eyes to protect them from the spray of the sea, and curled up in a ball, relishing the feel of the sun on her red, raw skin, enjoying the feeling of freedom, and though her mind was in overdrive, she fell asleep, and for the first time in forever, she didn't have a nightmare.

* * *

"I can't believe we still haven't found her..." Anna whispered quietly, "It's been over a month, now, and she's still missing..."

Elsa wrapped her arms around her younger sister gently, trying to comfort her, whilst being careful not to let her sister come into contact with her own curved stomach - Anna had apologised for the way she'd acted by now, not that Elsa blamed her, but it obviously still reminded the Princess of her own loss, and the Queen did not want to make her feel any worse than she did already.

Anna wiped her eyes gently. "She's only two, Elsa... She should be here, at home, with us. It's her birthday, after all... I can't believe we're missing it..."

"Oh, Anna..." Elsa whispered quietly, as a small tear escaped her own eyes. "It'll be okay. There's still a lot of land for us to search, so there's still a great chance that we'll be able to find her."

Anna smiled weakly. "I hope so," She whispered, and squeezed tightly onto her sister for comfort, as the door slammed open with a bang. Kristoff stood in the doorway, his breathing heavy, and he looked at Anna desperately, as if she'd be able to understand what he was saying from the glances he was giving her.

She couldn't.

"What is it, Kris?" She asked, excitedly, her hopes soaring at her husband's face, relishing in the fact that perhaps, just possibly, they could have found Mia. Elsa, also, looked up quickly, her eyes shining with foolish desire.

"They haven't found Mia yet," Kristoff said, between gasps for air, and the Queen and Princess' hearts fell rapidly, like stones, plummeting deep below water to the bottom of the sea. "But Arne has woken up, and they think he knows what happened to her!"

Anna and Elsa looked at each other quickly, before they both leaped up and rushed out of the door, dragging Kristoff along as they went. Seier, who had been laying at the end of he sofa, quickly jumped up also, excitedly following his people to one of the spare rooms, in which Arne was resting.

* * *

Anna burst into the room quickly, and Arne jumped in surprise, weakly, not quite awake, but getting there. He rubbed his eyes, as he sat up straighter, and watched the two adults before him with interest.

Quickly, before Anna could begin tormenting Arne with all of her desperate questions, Elsa walked briskly over to the boy, and sat down on the bed next to him. She smiled at her sister, but she frowned at her slightly, too, warning the younger girl not to be too hasty or rash.

"Hello, Arne," She greeted, softly, and the boy smiled at her. He seemed a little wary of the Princess, her boisterous entrance to the room confusing him, considering that he was still not quite with it. Every colour was too bright, and every sound too loud; every smell too strong and every thing too strange. "How are you?"

"Umm..." Arne seemed at a loss for words, and his mouth seemed almost out of sync with his words. "I'm okay..." He slurred out, and he blinked a few times, as a wave of dizziness came over him, and he groaned, laying down. Elsa sighed slightly, and she stood up, looking at Anna sadly.

"We can't ask him anything, yet, Anna." She whispered, quietly, as the boy fell asleep, snoring softly. "He's too tired, and we can't trust that he'd actually answer correctly. He seems quite confused, still, and I think we need to give him some time to rest."

Kristoff came over slowly, and picked Anna up, who was eagerly looking at the sleeping child, desperate for information about her daughter.

"Anna, come on." The man said, as he began to walk towards the door. "Elsa's right. We can't ask Arne any questions as he is now. He needs to rest."

Anna sighed as she was carried out of the room, and if one was to look into her eyes, the battle between the desire to rush back, and the knowledge that she shouldn't, was evident in the bright blue.

The war between her brain and her heart, what is right and what is wrong, continued throughout the day. Even as she wrestled an angry Seier off Odd, who was in the middle of being ripped to shreds by the normally-docile wolf, her heart was only half in the task, the other remaining in the room with Arne.

He was the only lead she had to her daughter. And for that, she needed to see him so very, very badly.

* * *

**Ta daa, next chapter is here! How did I do? **

**This one's a bit longer than the last few chapters, and I sincerely hope you enjoyed it. I hadn't originally meant for the part with Mia to last so long, but I just kept rambling on in the end! xD**

**I was quite relieved when I got Hans to rescue Mia, I must admit. I didn't want the plot to be resolved too quickly, but she's like a little baby sister to me now (I'd say daughter, but personally, I think I'm quite a bit too young for that. Still, each to their own, so if you don't agree, I'm not hating on you).**

**Anyway, please review. The more reviews I get, the quicker I write, and the quicker I write, the quicker you get new chapters! Whoop! The action will be coming up soon, so don't fret! (Just leave a review, 'kay?)**

**Haha, have a great day,**

**-SG**


	20. Chapter 20 - dedicated to KLime (guest)

_**Kristoff came over slowly, and picked Anna up, who was eagerly looking at the sleeping child, desperate for information about her daughter.**_

_**"Anna, come on." The man said, as he began to walk towards the door. "Elsa's right. We can't ask Arne any questions as he is now. He needs to rest."**_

_**Anna sighed as she was carried out of the room, and if one was to look into her eyes, the battle between the desire to rush back, and the knowledge that she shouldn't, was evident in the bright blue.**_

_**The war between her brain and her heart, what is right and what is wrong, continued throughout the day. Even as she wrestled an angry Seier off Odd, who was in the middle of being ripped to shreds by the normally-docile wolf, her heart was only half in the task, the other remaining in the room with Arne.**_

_**He was the only lead she had to her daughter. And for that, she needed to see him so very, very badly.**_

* * *

Seier snarled in the back of his throat as Odd came over to the table, and sat down, eyeing the large canine warily as he buttered his toast. Elsa giggled at him slightly, whilst sipping her steaming mug of tea.

"What have you done to get Seier so worked up this morning, Odd?" She asked softly, and helped herself to a mouthful of sugary sweet, honey porridge, moaning quietly in pleasure at the fragrant, exquisite taste. Odd frowned, and shrugged.

"I don't know. He seems to really hate me."

"He liked you a few days ago," Elsa teased, as she put down her spoon, and called over one of the maids, requesting a bowl of cheese straws, smiling a little sheepishly.

The maid laughed a little. "Are you sure, your Majesty?" She asked, "It's only eight in the morning."

Elsa blushed, as she nodded. "Please. I haven't had them in so long, and I'm really craving some."

The maid nodded, curtsying before she quickly rushed from the room to oblige her Queen's request, and Odd chuckled, as he took a bite of his toast, chewing a few times before swallowing, coughing slightly as he choked a little.

"Oh, Odd-" Elsa began, when the door slammed open, and one of the guards stood in the doorway, his face looking panicked. The Queen rose quickly, and her voice shook as she spoke. "What is the problem?" She asked, and her fingers trailed up to a loose lock of hair, fiddling with it distractedly.

"There has been a terrible, tragic event, in the Western forest..." The guard began, and looked at Odd with large, sorrowful eyes. "One of the castle maids has, we believe, been murdered."

Elsa gasped, and then she noticed the way the man was looking at her husband. She stifled a gasp, and quietly, she asked, "Do you know which maid this was?" She looked to the side slightly, not wanting to meet the man's gaze, not wanting her hypotheses to be true.

"We couldn't tell," The guard said, and though it made the Queen feel terrible, guilty, even, she felt a small amount of hope bubble up in her stomach. No doubt the relief was beginning to show on her face, but when she looked at Odd, there was not a single emotion showing through. "But I'm not sure if you've noticed that one maid has been gone a long time, and... we fear it may be her."

Elsa's eyes widened, and her mouth opened slightly. "No..." She said, for she'd always been fond of the girl. "No!" She exclaimed, louder, and the Guard looked a little scared as he backed away from the scene slightly. Odd turned to look at her, and walked over, pulling her into an embrace, although it seemed a little stiff and forced. Elsa sobbed quietly, burying her face in his chest, and he patted her back, softly.

"You don't know who he is talking about, do you, Odd?" She whispered, and the Guard left, leaving the two to have some privacy. Odd pushed Elsa away slightly, so that he could look at her, and she noticed the way his green eyes seemed a duller shade of green, and she couldn't help but feel that, like she, he had a suspicion which he did not want confirmed. "He's talking about Heidi, Odd." Still there was no reaction, and by the way Odd was holding himself stiffly, Elsa figured that her words were not sinking in, were not going to her head. "Your sister, Odd." She whispered, finally, and that seemed to finally make an impression, as Odd let go of the Queen, collapsing to the floor.

Elsa stood still for a few moments, rubbing her slightly swollen stomach gently, before kneeling down, and placing her hand on Odd's shoulder gently.

"We will not let this go unpunished, Odd." She said, eventually, and the man looked up slowly. His eyes were dry, but he looked sorrowful, and he nodded, slowly, standing up with a determined look upon his face. "I promise."

* * *

"We are so sorry, Princess Anna." The Guard said. "We looked where Arne said he saw young Princess Mia being taken, but, I'm afraid, she was not there..." He paused slightly, trying to decide how to continue. "We do have evidence that she may have been there though, so we shall continue the search. We expect that she was simply moved to another, safer location."

Anna sobbed quietly, for all of her hopes had been set upon finding her young daughter in the place which Arne had suggested. Kristoff, however, frowned, as he looked at the Guard, concerned.

"What _sort_ of evidence?" He said, worriedly, and he gently took hold of Anna's hand, for both his and her comfort.

"Well, there was ice, and..." The Guard began, and then trailed off.

"And?" Anna whispered, just loud enough so that she could be heard, and her voice shook with worry. She gently squeezed Kristoff's hand, tighter, clinging on to him as if for dear life.

"And there were also traces of..." He took a deep breath, and Anna whimpered, as Kristoff tensed up beside her, dreading what was coming next. "Blood."

* * *

There was a slight pop, and in the dim light of the chilly December morning, two people appeared out of nowhere, shivering at the nippy air.

"The weather is much warmer in the Southern Isles," Hans snarled, and he pulled his cloak around his body tighter. "How about taking those magic hands of yours, and making me a warmer cape, eh?"

Alya chuckled. "Why? Aren't you manly enough to deal with a little bit of chilly weather?" She teased, with a cold voice. Hans frowned at her, grumpily. "Besides, I've already made sure we can't be detected by magic, so technically, I've already given you something with my magic. I'm not going to spoil you."

"Have it your way." He snapped, "Come on. Let's get this over and done with."

Ayla grinned, as she followed Hans, waving her hands over her body to warm herself up, smiling smugly as she watched the man in front of her shivering from the cold. "So, Hans. What is it that we are doing, exactly?" She asked, as she walked a little more briskly, to keep up with the Prince in front of her.

Hans grinned. "Well, it has come to my attention that the royals of Arendelle could quite easily find out about our plans, through one... being, who is incredibly old, wise, and has his own magic. I do not know the extent of his powers, but it has come to my attention that he may be able to predict the future."

Ayla nodded. "I understand, now." She affirmed, "If this is true, this person could discover our plans, perhaps reveal unto the Arendelle Royals what we have in store for them, and our schemes would fail." She looked around, frowning. "Where, exactly, do we find this person, though? Unless I am much mistaken, we are in the middle of no where, and my magic cannot detect anyone aside from us."

Hans chuckled. "Your magic would not work on them. They have incredible abilities to disguise themselves, and I expect this protects them from magical detection, as well."

"Pardon?"

"You'll see," Hans said, mysteriously, "Either way, we must eliminate this threat. It could ruin our whole plan, and we've already had one issue, what with Queen Elsa's pregnancy, so we can't afford another."

Ayla nodded, and continued after Hans in silence for a while, but she stopped when she heard excited cheering a little way off. "Is that it?" She whispered, and Hans nodded, as he pressed his fingers to his lips, a motion to remind her to stay silent. She nodded, and continued to creep after him, until they came to a valley, and Ayla had to stifle a gasp, for down in the valley, where hundreds of rock creatures; trolls.

The largest troll stopped, and his gaze met Ayla's for just a second before he transformed into a rock, and the trolls surrounding him followed suit, so that in a blink of an eye, all that lay in the valley were hundreds of large, mossy rocks. If they hadn't known of the trolls' presence in the area, Hans and Ayla never would have known any better, would have simply thought it to be a trick of the light.

"That one." Hans whispered, pointing to Grand Pabbie, and Ayla nodded, concentrating on the largest rock of all. Opening her palms wide, a beam of bright red light shot in the direction of the hidden troll, but it bounced away, flying backwards for a few metres before dissolving into the air.

"No!" Ayla whispered, "He has a shield, I can't get my magic to hit him."

Hans cursed under his breath, before his face lit up. "If you can't get the troll, get the shield instead." He instructed, and Ayla frowned, before she understood his words. Steeling herself, she flicked her wrist, and the force around the troll began to glow green, before it began to shrink, turning blue, then purple, pink, and finally, blood red.

The shield continued to shrink, and then, with a flash of bright, white hot light, exploded, and Ayla grinned as a shower of pebbles rained down around herself and Hans.

Where Grand Pabbie had rested just a minute before, lay nothing but the necklace he had worn around his neck, which slowly sunk into the ground, glowing bright, until it's light disappeared under a coating of dirt. Ayla grinned, taking Hans' hand, popping away from the scene, as tendrils of buttercups, bright, and yellow as the old troll's fire crystals, sprouted up all around the valley.

From the place in which Pabbie had rested, a large, yellow flower grew up rapidly, stopping before it could bloom, a large and magnificent rose bud standing tall in the orange light of the sunrise.

And though he was gone, the air of magic, wisdom, and, most significantly, the caring nature, which always radiated in Pabbie's presence, still remained, living on, and the cold air was alive with the spirit of him, as bright lights in the sky began to shine brightly, twirling through the air, as if dancing. And as the trolls began to change back into their normal forms, despite being saddened, they did not mourn, for they knew in their hearts that Pabbie was still with them.

* * *

**So, first complaint - I got very few reviews last chapter, which really makes me sad. And the chapter before that, and the chapter before that... It's becoming increasingly difficult for me to write these chapters, because I haven't got the inspiration I normally get from reviews. If you want longer chapters more often, then the answer is simple; just review more often! Yay!**

**I'm going to start bringing back the challenges, so hopefully this will help you to review! Anyway, here's the first challenge:**

**We all know Ayla, at least a little, now. But what are her intentions? Her interests? Why is she getting involved with the conflict? And just how strong is she? It's your chance to have your say! **

**So, what do you think Ayla is like? Answer the above questions, and include any more information about her which you can think of. My favourite biography will have the chance to be included in the story later on, so don't miss out on this opportunity!**

**-SG**


	21. Chapter 21 - dedicated to BlackKnght

_**Hans cursed under his breath, before his face lit up. "If you can't get the troll, get the shield instead." He instructed, and Ayla frowned, before she understood his words. Steeling herself, she flicked her wrist, and the force around the troll began to glow green, before it began to shrink, turning blue, then purple, pink, and finally, blood red.**_

_**The shield continued to shrink, and then, with a flash of bright, white hot light, exploded, and Ayla grinned as a shower of pebbles rained down around herself and Hans.**_

_**Where Grand Pabbie had rested just a minute before, lay nothing but the necklace he had worn around his neck, which slowly sunk into the ground, glowing bright, until it's light disappeared under a coating of dirt. Ayla grinned, taking Hans' hand, popping away from the scene, as tendrils of buttercups, bright, and yellow as the old troll's fire crystals, sprouted up all around the valley.**_

_**From the place in which Pabbie had rested, a large, yellow flower grew up rapidly, stopping before it could bloom, a large and magnificent rose bud standing tall in the orange light of the sunrise.**_

_**And though he was gone, the air of magic, wisdom, and, most significantly, the caring nature, which always radiated in Pabbie's presence, still remained, living on, and the cold air was alive with the spirit of him, as bright lights in the sky began to shine brightly, twirling through the air, as if dancing. And as the trolls began to change back into their normal forms, despite being saddened, they did not mourn, for they knew in their hearts that Pabbie was still with them.**_

* * *

"Good morning, Princess Mia," Hans said, as he peeked around the door, and entered the room, sitting down next to the young girl, who was laying on the bed, silently. She whimpered slightly as he smiled at her, shrinking under the covers, and the Prince moved a little away from her, trying to convey to her that he wasn't going to hurt her.

He figured that if she came to that conclusion herself, without the fact being forced upon her, she'd be more likely to believe it. And it was true, too; Hans didn't want to hurt the young girl, for she could come in useful with her powers. Now that he had Ayla on his side, Mia's value had lessened, but she could still be an asset to him; if he could convince her to get close to her parents, no matter how scared she might be, there would be a direct way to kill them. Besides, she was clearly powerful, and if he hurt her, she would likely hurt him back.

"How are you, Mia?" He said gently, smiling, "Are you feeling better?"

Mia mumbled quietly, still shrinking away, and Hans sighed. Time was of the essence, but sadly, he couldn't rush her - she needed to come to trust him herself, or the plan would never work. Standing up, he bowed slightly, and gave her a warm smile.

"Would you like anything to eat?" He asked, before leaving, and Mia nodded very stiffly. "I'll get you some soup, if you'd like?" Once again, she nodded, and Hans walked over to her slowly, scaring the child, but he tried to ignore this, as he laid his hand upon her shoulder gently. She whined as he whispered comfortingly, "Don't worry, Sweetie. You're safe now."

Smiling, he turned and left to get a maid to bring her a bowl of soup, but his face dropped the act of gentleness when he was out of her sight, and he scowled.

_Bloody child, _he thought to himself, savagely. _It's such a pain, having to work everything around her. _His mood only got worse when he was reminded of Queen Elsa's pregnancy, and he clenched his fists, trying to calm down, knowing full well that if he didn't, he'd end up breaking something.

He breathed deeply a few times, and then, suddenly, a wave of pure relief washed over him, and he sighed as his mind cleared of all emotions for a minute, before he frowned a little, and then chuckled.

"Hello, Ayla," he said, and the woman smiled as she walked over to stand before him. "How are you?"

The woman nodded. "I'm feeling well, thanks," she said, "Although I couldn't help but notice that you seemed just the tiniest bit frustrated and stressed. Thought I might lend you a hand; it's no good planning world domination when you're in a bad mood. Completely counterproductive, actually; you'd end up killing everyone and have no one to control, simply because you were a bit grumpy and they were being boring to you."

Hans gasped, putting on a face of mock innocence. "Me? Really?" He teased, truthfully in a good mood from Ayla's handiwork. His companion clicked her fingers, causing devil horns and a tail to sprout.

"Yeah, I'd say so." She replied, as she waved her hand, making the new accessories disappear. "At any rate, I need to talk to you."

"Me too. So, I've been wondering, what's your story?" He leaned against the wall lazily, taking a large bite out of a large, sour green apple sat upon a ledge, savouring the sharp taste, even as sour as it was, and he cringed slightly. "I mean, why are you actually getting involved with this whole thing?"

Ayla shrugged slightly. "My mother and brother always ignored me. They were clever, but even though I had less magic than they did, I was always much smarter. I used my time wisely and learnt just how to control my magic properly. So... I'm probably as powerful as them, nearly. At any rate, they were family, so... I guess I've inherited their goal, so to speak, and I can't let their death go to waste, now, can I?"

Hans chuckled at Ayla's almost sweet, innocent finish to her short speech. She almost sounded as if she believed her cause was completely selfless and noble, trying to complete her dead family's missions, even if it did involve starting a war. Still though, Hans wouldn't argue; she was a useful person to have on his side, and in truth, he would do exactly the same if he was her anyway.

Ayla smiled. "Anyway, like I was saying, I want to talk to you. So, I've been thinking..."

"God help us all," Hans whispered, and Ayla huffed.

"I don't think I'll help you out again when you almost blow a fuse in frustration. Quite frankly, you're almost annoying like this. And before you say it, yes, you."

Hans chuckled. "You can read minds." He joked, and Ayla laughed.

"I can, actually, although I've never tested it out, so stop thinking what you are and get back on track, Princey." She scolded, before continuing, "Like I was saying, I was thinking and, correct me if I'm wrong, but I do believe that we really need to start getting a move on. I know about the situation with Mia, but would it not be prudent to begin the attack, and continue to... Train her, so to speak, whilst the war is raging. Perhaps we could even stage it to look like Arendelle and Corona started the war, which would surely make the Princess angry and help our cause?"

Hans paused for a moment, weighing up the suggestion.

Oh, what to do?

* * *

Queen Elsa sat on her end, rubbing her stomach gently, as her sister gently massaged her aching shoulders.

"Thank you for this, Anna," She said, "It means a lot to me. Odd said he'd do it, but then he had to go out to help with the search for Mia this morning, as you know, so..."

Anna sighed. "I'm not even getting my hopes up, anymore. They haven't found her in almost two months, so I can't really see her being found at all anymore." She stopped rubbing her sister's shoulders, and sobbed. "I mean, how often have you heard of royalty being kidnapped and not killed? Except for ransom, which they'd have demanded by now."

Elsa's face fell. "Oh, Sweetie... We'll find her, don't worry. In fact, I've been thinking, and I do suspect that it may have something to do with her powers. I expect that whoever kidnapped her is keeping her so that they can use her magic."

Anna nodded, sadly. "I wish I had magic... Then if I ever found them, I could freeze them, and then blast them to smithereens."

For a moment, Elsa looked taken aback, but she smiled softly after. "You want magic, you say?" She whispered, "You seem to have forgotten about your own Talent."

"Talking people into insanity?" Anna suggested feebly, and Elsa giggled quietly. Though she was terrified for her niece, she was glad her sister was beginning to be a little happier, if very occasionally, and she wasn't too worried herself; she was convinced her hypothesis was correct.

"Well, other than that." she teased, "You can channel magic, remember?"

Anna nodded, as she recalled the way she had been able to harness Elsa's magic before, and Elsa took her hand in her own, channeling some of her own icy magic into the Princess. Anna smiled very slightly at this, as she began to make a few soft snowflakes, and Elsa batted her hand gently.

"Save it for someone else," She whispered, and stood up. "Come on. Let's go see how the search is going."

Anna nodded, and followed her sister out of the door.

"So, Elsa," She said, but her voice had lost it's slightly happy edge. Ah, well- at least she'd been happy for a few minutes when she was distracted. "When are you, you know, due?"

Elsa smiled softly. "Well, it's December now, and I'm about four months along, so... Probably some time in May, I reckon. We don't know for sure, but it's a pretty good guess."

Anna nodded. "You should probably tell the kingdom soon," She said, and then burst into tears, just as Elsa replied "yes", remembering the presentation of Mia.

Elsa sighed. "Come here, Anna..." She whispered, and opened her arms wide to accept Anna in an embrace. "Shush, it'll be okay. I promise." Gently, she smoothed her sister's hair, and cooed softly, trying to calm her, not hearing Ida's approach. The poor woman looked terrible, even worse than Anna; her daughter had been murdered just a week, or so, before.

"Excuse me, Ma'am?" She said, and Elsa jumped a little in surprise. "I've a letter here for you, from Corona." Her voice was dull, and the Queen took it softly.

"Thank you, Ida." She said, "But I really must insist you at least take a few days off. I hate to see you like this..."

Ida shook her head. "It helps to keep myself busy. Just working through the pain... It helps..." She sobbed softly, and Anna's eyes widened. Quickly, she rushed over to Ida and pulled her into a hug, both women clinging to each other for support, as Elsa read her letter.

A soft thud made the two grief-stricken mothers look around, to see Elsa, the master of regality and a strong Queen, leaning against the wall, her knuckles white where she was gripping the ledge so tightly. The letter fell from her grasp, floating down to the floor like a feather.

"What is it, Elsa?" Anna asked, worriedly, and Elsa gasped slightly, before she began to speak.

"The southern Isles and Weselton," She whispered, "They've gone to war with Corona!"

* * *

**Things are _really_ starting to heat up now!**

**So, you got a little snippet of Mia, a little snippet of Ayla, and a little bit of Anna and Elsa time! Yay!**

**First, in response to a review by Maria Corona, a guest, firstly, if your dog fell asleep while you were reading it to him, then I'm actually pretty impressed it hung around and didn't go off - as far as I know, dogs aren't all that interested in someone reading to them. Secondly, you can't have a twin cousin, so, to be honest, you are just making a fool of yourself. Perhaps I'll lose readers for saying this, and I hope I won't, but please don't keep reading, because to be honest, you are really being stupid. If the story is so rubbish, why bother reading anyway? You're simply being a troll, and all it does is make me think how pathetic you are acting. I don't appreciate stupid reviewers.**

**Anyway, rant aside, please review. Sorry it took a long time to update - I was hoping that if I left it a while then more people would review. Still I didn't get many comments, and it makes me sad. To encourage y'all on, here is the next challenge for this chapter! (Thanks to everyone who entered the challenge last chapter!)**

**So, there is a war about to start, or at least, which Arendelle will be joining. So, are there any particular events / scenes you want to see occur? (For example, a fight scene, etc)**

**Thanks for reading! Happy second month anniversary to Frozen Powers, and hopefully there will still be many more birthdays for this story! (P.S. The whole series so far is six and a half months old... the time has flown by, don't you think?)**

**See you around!**

**SG**


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